Youngsters have been caught killing wildlife around the river in York.
Police caught two youths in Foss Basin on Saturday morning.
They had been using what officers described as “a heavy, metal catapult to kill wildlife around the river”.
They confiscated the catapult and informed the children’s parents.
Today a North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “Please speak to you children and teenagers about the harm and distress that using catapults or other weapons in this manner can cause.
“This type of behaviour can result in serious injury and suffering as well as death. If it can wreak harm on wildlife it can do the same to pets or even children.
“Killing wildlife is an offence that and will be prosecuted under the Wildlife Act.”