A man who shot seagulls with a catapult, stole their eggs and kept an injured bird in a cage in his kitchen has been fined £940 and ordered to surrender his weapons.
Bryan Maclennan, 34, was carrying a seagull in a plastic bag when he was spotted by police in Invergordon and his crimes came to light.
Maclennan, of Firhill, Alness, previously pled guilty to three charges under the Wildlife and Countryside Act when he appeared at Tain Sheriff Court last month.
He admitted two charges of intentionally or recklessly injuring a wild bird by striking it with a ball bearing from a slingshot or similar instrument and a third charge of taking or destroying eggs from a wild bird.
Fiscal depute Pauline Gair told the court: “At 9.30pm on May 29 police were in the main street in Invergordon when they observed the accused acting suspiciously.
“He was thereafter stopped attempting to discard an injured herring gull that was in a plastic bag.”
The court heard that police then visited and searched Maclennan’s home where they discovered a basket containing half a dozen herring gull eggs.
“An injured herring gull was found in a cage on top of the freezer,” Mrs Gair added.
The bird was subsequently handed over to animal welfare professionals and was treated and released, she said.
Maclennan was told his bizarre actions, in May of last year, were “concerning” and “not the way to deal with” a perceived menace.
Tain Sheriff Court previously heard that Maclennan was spotted acting strangely by police in Invergordon.
When they stopped him he was attempting to dispose of an injured herring gull he had been carrying in a plastic bag.
A search of his person and home uncovered slingshots, ballbearings, herring gull eggs and an injured bird in a cage on top of a freezer.
During that appearance Sheriff Gary Aitken called for reports saying that his behaviour was either “peculiar or sinister.”
‘No risk of reoffending’
At the sentencing hearing yesterday, solicitor Neil Wilson said his client had offered an explanation for his actions to the social work team and had been assessed as posing “no risk of reoffending”.
Fining Maclennan £940 and granting a motion for forfeiture of the catapults, ball bearings and gull eggs, Sheriff Aitken told Maclennan this was “not the way to deal with” any perceived menace from the birds.
He said: “I take the view that these are in fact fairly serious charges and that anyone who is prepared to use a weapon against another living creature is someone to be concerned about.”
The sheriff added: “Injuring something and then taking it home and keeping it on a cage in the kitchen is also concerning.”
