Stag died after being tangled in plastic tape on Jura
The “stressed” animal was found entangled in plastic waste on Jura and had to be put down. …
Image copyright Wild Side of Jura /SWNS.COM A stag died after becoming entangled in plastic tape on a Scottish island.
It is feared the animal was trapped in the discarded strapping for a week before he was discovered on Jura in the Inner Hebrides.
Gamekeeper Scott Muir, 32, found him struggling on an island hillside on Wednesday.
He believes the stag went without food for about a week as his mouth was jammed closed by the debris. The animal had to be put down.
Mr Muir said the stag was likely to have got his antler caught in the plastic while grazing on seaweed on the coastline.
‘Tired and stressed’
He believed the stag then walked for about a mile on to the hillside before reaching his final resting point.
Mr Muir said: “I was walking over the estate when I saw the plastic waste and realised there was a stag caught.
“I thought it was dead at first but as I approached it I could see his head start to move.
“These can be 18st animals and I know how powerful they can be, but he looked tired and stressed and he couldn’t see because the plastic was right around his antlers”.
Mr Muir is a volunteer for Wild Side of Jura, a group which aims to protect the west coast of the island.
He said the plastic pollution on the island had been getting worse over the last six years and believed commercial fishing was probably responsible.
The picture was posted on social media and local residents expressed their anger.
One resident said: “That’s shocking, poor animal, the thought of him struggling with that for hours makes me so angry.
“So much plastic out there, it makes it much more of a reality when you see the damage it does so close to home”.
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