'Evil' yobs thought to have stoned cygnets (From Stroud News and Journal)

'Evil' yobs thought to have stoned cygnets

MYSTERY surrounds the death of five tiny cygnets after their bodies were found floating on the canal by a horrified Stonehouse resident.

The man found the little birds dead on the Stroudwater Canal on Saturday, May 21 and is convinced it was the work of stone-throwing yobs.

"It is shameful," said the resident.

"An elderly couple who live nearby said they actually saw kids throwing stones at the canal.

"This is not some childish prank. This is sheer evil. I do not want to tar all young people with the same brush - it is a small element - but we have got to deal with them."

He said the last time he saw the eight three-week-old baby swans together was around 5pm on Friday, May 20. By the following evening, all but three were dead.

Local RSPCA officer Philip Mann said he had not been informed of the incident and added that the deaths could have been caused by a number of different factors.

"The problem is that they could have died for all sorts of reasons, like genetic problems, the weather, or predators," he said.

"But I have been up here about ten months now and I have seen cases of swans being shot and grabbed and stabbed and all sorts of things. People do some horrible things.

"Sometimes you do get children and adults who decide it is fun to hurt animals and if it is something that comes to our attention we will certainly deal with it."