A HERON is in trouble with residents of a Bury street after carrying out dawn raids on fish ponds.

Locals in Victor Avenue initially welcomed the return of the heron to the area as a sign that years of hard work cleaning up the nearby River Irwell and the environment had paid dividends.

But their joy quickly turned to anger when the wading bird was spotted feeding on fish stocked in garden ponds at the homes of Mrs Jean Murray, Mrs Elaine Fishwick and Mrs Ruth Ramsey.

Mrs Murray, who has lost two five-year-old goldfish to the hungry heron, said: "I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. It was nice to see the heron in my back garden but now I can see why it was there.

"The cheeky bird has had my fish for lunch. I've had them for years and they were like pets to me."

The pond of her neighbour, Mrs Fishwick, also became a target for the heron although she was not sure how many of her fish it had eaten.

Pond owners in Victor Avenue are now on the defensive, covering them with mesh to protect the remaining fish from becoming "lunch".

Mrs Ramsey said: "My husband Winston is livid. He's very upset by the loss of his fish and is keeping a close eye on the pond, ready to charge out if the heron returns for a snack."

It is not the first time a heron has caused havoc with local pond life. Last year home owners in the Higher Ainsworth Road area of Radcliffe lost scores of fish to a ravenous raider.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.