An incredibly rare osprey nest was cut down by vandals with a chainsaw just one day after the bird laid its first egg.

The nesting platform in north Wales was host to a breeding pair of ospreys, a rare and highly protected species of bird.

Police believe the vandals arrived by boat at around 9.45pm and would have ‘a strong motive’ to rid the lake area of ospreys.

The nesting platform had been set up by conservation programme Brenig Osprey Project in partnership with the North Wales Wildlife Trust.

North Wales Police’s rural crime team tweeted on Sunday: ‘We are following up a number of inquiries and also using the latest technology to help us move this investigation in the right direction.

‘Motives are a huge clue for this crime and a phone call today has given us one that we hadn’t considered.’

On Sunday, the North Wales Wildlife Trust tweeted an image of the two ospreys looking at the space where their nest should have been in Brenig, which borders Conwy and Denbighshire.

It said: ‘Until we know whether they’ll use it, our protection measures will be mostly reactive and there may be limitations on what can be delivered at the new platform.

‘Again, please bear with us whilst we get things in place – we’ll update everyone as soon as we possibly can.’

The group urged anyone with information to contact North Wales Police.

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