Man filmed brutally beating baby seagulls to death with spade

HOMENEWS UK WORLD WEIRD TECH SPORTENTERTAINMENTLIFESTYLEVIDEOMORESEARCH METRO Follow Metro.co.uk on Facebook Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter Follow Metro.co.uk on Pinterest Follow Metro.co.uk on Instagram 130.4M SHARES Man filmed brutally beating baby seagulls to death with spade Georgia DiebeliusSaturday 3 Mar 2018 4:22 pm Share this article with Facebook Share this article with Twitter Share this article with Google Plus Share this article through email 409 (Picture: Getty Images/Nature Picture Library) A man has been fined after he was filmed beating two baby seagulls to death on the roof of a hotel. Anthony Bowker, 57, used a spade-like tool as a weapon to kill the pair of herring gulls. These eye-opening photographs capture the human cost of austerity He was filmed killing the tiny birds at the Cleve Court Hotel, in Paignton, Devon, on May 30, 2017. The RSPCA brought a prosecution and Bowker admitted killing two wild birds when he appeared at Plymouth Magistrates’ Court. Bowker, of Paignton, Devon, was fined £506 and ordered to pay a £50 victim surcharge, as well as being ordered to pay £750 to the RSPCA for the cost of bringing the case. ‘The maximum penalty, if found guilty, is six months in prison or a £5,000 fine.’ (Picture: Google) A spokesperson for the RSPCA said after the case said that Bowker told the court he was unaware that gulls are a protected species. The spokesperson said: ‘All wild birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and it is illegal – except under licence to take, injure or kill wild birds or interfere with their nest or eggs. ‘The maximum penalty, if found guilty, is six months in prison or a £5,000 fine.