Heartbreaking photographs show an unborn baby deer lying next to its dead mother after she was shot dead in what appears to be an illegal deer culling.
Residents on Skye have been left sickened by the devastating photographs after out of season culls on the island.
Gamekeepers have now warned against the doubling of Scotland's female deer culling seasons after fuming locals got in touch to express their anger.
Photographs showing dead hind at a new forestry enclosure near Dunvegan were shared on social media this week.
The poor targeted animals appear to have been shot many weeks out of season, with general authorisation to cull deer inside enclosed woodland ending on April 1.
NatureScot, the body who would sign off deer authorisations, confirmed they had not given permission for any cull to take place in the area - making the killing of the female and her unborn calf illegal.
The Dunvegan forestry scheme has caused local tensions, with some islanders angry that productive crofting land had been swallowed up for a state-funded rewilding project.
It is understood the fenced tree scheme is part of a £1m native woodland creation project on the MacLeod estate.
The Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) said it had no interest in the politics surrounding the scheme.
However, it warned Scottish Government against doubling the female deer culling seasons - something presently under consideration at Holyrood.
“We are not going to enter into speculation as to what has happened here,” said SGA Chairman Alex Hogg.
“What we do know is that one image clearly shows a female, with a very large unborn calf, which has obviously been culled weeks outside of the legal open season.
“Judging by online comments, this is not the type of deer management the people of Skye want to see, climate emergency or not, and we have warned Scottish Government about this very issue before.”
He added: “Deer need to be managed and, in certain circumstances, that has to take place outside of the approved seasons, under authorisation from NatureScot.
“However, the Govt-commissioned Deer Working Group Report recommends doubling the female culling seasons, as a new normal in Scotland, without the need for such authorisations.
“These seasons were hard won and put in place to protect females from being culled in September. September culls increase the risk of dependent calves starving to death in public forests.
“The seasons were also put in place to avoid culling females when they are so heavily pregnant in April that their calves could almost stand by themselves. This is the type of management which has clearly reviled those who have seen the photographs and contacted ourselves.
“We urge Scottish Government not to sanction changes which will make this type of deer management the standard in Scotland, whether for tree planting, conservation or anything else.”
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