‘Why are they showing this?!’ fume Winterwatch fans as BBC footage sparks animal cruelty row
WINTERWATCH fans have been left fuming after the BBC aired shocking animal footage on the programme.
Chris Packham and Michaela Strachan set up an infra-red camera at the RSPB Arne nature reserve in the hopes of catching some animals coming out to feed at night.
Presenters went on to show audiences a video they'd managed to capture of the nocturnal wildlife in Dorset.
But viewers were left horrified when they saw the footage from what the show hosts dubbed the "Carcass Cam".
The camera was trained on the body of a dead deer, and audiences at home watched as a fox came to gnaw on it.
Michaela narrated the video, saying: "Then at night, visited by a fox.
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"This is exactly what we’d expect to come to this carcass and I’m sure over the next few days we’ll be getting more foxes.
"It looks nervous but remember, this is pitch black. This is an infra-red camera.
"It gets its confidence, sniffs around a bit and takes a massive mouthful, and runs away.
"I think we’re going to get a lot of action on that camera, I feel very positive about it."
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Winterwatch viewers took to social media to hit out at the segment, with one complaining: "Straight in there with a dead Bambi feasted on by a buzzard."
Another questioned: "A dead deer. Why are they showing this?"
A third even asked: "Where did you get the dead deer from?
"I hope it wasn’t killed for the sake of a TV show."