POLICE are investigating a sickening animal cruelty incident in which a young seagull appears to have been lured into an ancient west Dorset monument before being brutally killed and dismembered.

Bridport Police are appealing for information from the public over a cruel incident where it appears that a juvenile seagull was deliberately trapped and killed at the Lepers Well in Lyme Regis.

It is believed this is likely to have occurred sometime between Monday September 27 and Tuesday September 28. The main part of the seagull was found under a large rock and there was a tin of sardines next to it and it is suspected that the seagull was enticed into the area using the sardines before it was killed.

Another large boulder was found close by and this appears to have been taken from the top right-hand corner of the wall protecting the well causing damage to this unique ancient monument.

The harrowing discovery was made by members of the public who are said to have been "very upset and distressed" by what they saw, police say.

"All wild birds including gulls and their chicks and nests are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981," a spokesman for Bridport Police added.

"This means that unless you have a special licence it's illegal to intentionally kill, take or injure wild birds including gulls or take or destroy their eggs, or damage or destroy any nests while they're in use or being built."

Anyone with information is asked to contact Dorset Police at crowd.in/Kg0Thx preferably via email 101@dorset.pnn.police.uk or by calling 101, quoting occurrence number 55210157107.

Alternatively, if you wish to report this anonymously, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers online at crowd.in/GkvFi3 or call Freephone 0800 555 111.