WILDLIFE workers have been sickened by the brutal killing of a young swan at a North-East nature reserve.

The three-month-old cyg-net's maimed body was discovered in a pond at Ferryhill Carrs, in Ferryhill, County Durham, by a conservation volunteer.

The frail bird had been abandoned by its parents when they flew to another site last month and conservation teams had been feeding it with a view to rearing it at an animal sanctuary.

But a resident who went to feed the swan found it floating in the water after being beaten to death.

Experts believe it was frightened into going under a jetty where it could not escape, before being taken from the water and stamped on or hit with a plank of wood.

Linda Charlton, regional representative for the Berwick Swan and Wildlife Trust, said: "In ten years of working with swans, this is by far the worst case I've seen. Everyone involved is disgusted by this."

Nature reserves officer Tammy Casey, of Sedgefield Borough Council, hopes that someone using the popular footpaths nearby may have information.

She said: "We need a witness to come forward and help find the culprits and stop it happening again."

Inspector Adrian Green said police would look to prosecute anyone found responsible for killing or being cruel to swans and other wildlife.

Anyone with information is asked contact Durham Police on 0845 606 0365.