Warning: Graphic images included below
Calls have been made for a ban on jet skis at one of Scotland's most popular shorefronts after a speedboat caused devastating injuries to a young male porpoise and left it for dead.
Campaigners say there must be more robust regulation and a ban on jet skis launching from Largs RNLI slipway after the dead mammal was found on the beach.
Deep wounds can be seen on the porpoise, which washed up on the beach outside Boathouse Avenue.
READ MORE: Pilot whales stranded on the shore of a Scottish island
Speaking exclusively to the Largs and Millport News, David Nairn, who runs the Clyde Porpoise group, says it is not the first time animals have been 'harassed'.
He is calling on the area's four local councillors to ban jet skis in the area to prevent any future losses.
He said: "The speedboat propeller had clearly sliced through the porpoise. Two witnesses saw the boat hit the animal the day before.
"There were a couple of speedboats and jet skis all playing off the RNLI slip.
"They are morons on these jet bikes who are disturbing all the calves from the parent porpoises.
"The jet skiers and boats were zooming around, harassing the porpoises and they are regularly ripping around the Isle of Cumbrae.
READ MORE: Hero skipper who saved woman's life did 'what anyone else would do'
"It is a crying shame as this was a young adult male porpoise of medium length and otherwise had been in very good health."
There are fears from David and others that the wildlife watching code is not robust enough, and more needs to be done to protect Scotland's marine life.
A specific ranger service in the upper Clyde is being considered by David to deal with the problems on the shoreline.
He said: "I am thinking about setting up a Ranger service in the upper Clyde to deal with these issues.
"We want to keep the marine wildlife, including our only solitary dolphin, Kylie. The fear is it is only a matter of time before we lose her if this reckless activity continues.
"We have a decision to make. We either hold on to the beautiful natural environment that we hold dear or we let neds on jet-skis and speedboats destroy it."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel