The distressed bird is still managing to fly even though the bolt, of which both ends are visible, pierced it between the eyes.
It was spotted by Graham Rhodes, a photographer who lives in Scarborough, who was left shocked. It’s the second recent case in the Burr Bank area after another seagull was found with an injured wing.
Mr Rhodes, who runs Aakschipper Gallery, said he believes the dart is a bolt from a crossbow – and he was concerned the attacks could result in an increase of violence in the town.‘My main worry is that there is someone walking the streets of Scarborough with a crossbow and shooting at birds,’ he said.
‘If they are shooting at gulls in the sky and miss, the bolts have to go somewhere and could take someone's eye out.
‘It is incredibly hard to believe that the bird is still flying with a bolt in its head because you would think the weight of the object would restrict its movement.
‘However the bird seems absolutely normal,' he told the Scarborough Evening News.‘The gulls are coming up to the breeding season and I always see this one with its mate when I walk my dog in the area. It is such a sad sight.’
It comes after the introduction of two harrier hawks in the area to clear gulls from the town’s Grand Hotel.
Geoff Edmond, RSPCA inspector for the Scarborough area, said it was ‘appalling’ and ‘completely illegal’ to shoot birds.
‘It is remarkable that the gull with the bolt in its head is still flying because the object could have hit the brain or fractured its skull,’ he added.
