Angry residents will confront council chiefs tomorrow over a controversial goose shoot on a Moray nature reserve.
A group of eight residents from Kinloss, Findhorn and Forres started a petition asking for a bylaw on the killing of geese and ducks in the Findhorn Bay Local Nature Reserve in the middle of November.
More than 800 people have subsequently signed it and protesters will now present themselves at a crunch council meeting on Tuesday.
The Friends of Findhorn Bay collective was established to help promote the beauty spot as a peaceful retreat and safe haven for wildlife.
The group has claimed the presence of shooters killing geese as they flew overhead near Kinloss was at odds with its image as a nature reserve.
Lead protestor, Lisa Mead, also previously said that the shooters left the corpses of the slaughtered animals lying on the beach for children and residents to find.
The council has previously rejected the bylaw, arguing it would struggle to monitor shooting on the reserve.
But a spokesman for the British Association for Shooting and Conservation has argued wildfowling added hundreds of millions to the Scottish economy.
An online post by lead protestor Ms Mead said that many locals supported a prohibition on shooting.
She wrote: “(There) is a significant number of local people in favour of a ban. My sense [from this] is that if the council ignores or makes light of this issue, the voice in favour of a ban is only going to get stronger and more active.
“And it is important to note – this movement calling for a ban covers a wide cross-section of the public, from all walks of life and of all ages.
“This is not a “fringe” movement. It is a large group of people who would like to see Moray Council honouring the purpose for which the Findhorn Bay Local Nature Reserve was originally set up.”
Protestors will present their case to the Economic Development and Infrastructure Services Committee at the council’s Elgin headquarters at 9.30am on Tuesday.