A wild goose with an arrow through its breast has been spotted by Iowa Des Moines animal control, but so far, the animal has eluded capture.
The Canadian goose's injury appears gruesome -- the arrow seems to have pierced all the way through the bird -- but the animal continues to mingle and fly with is flock, KCCI reports.
A KCCI reporter recently found the bird near Sun Prairie Apartments in West Des Moines, KRTV notes.
"It's kind of sad, you know that someone would do that, you know try to shoot a goose with an arrow like that," a resident of Sun Prairie Apartments told KCCI.
Jeff Swearngin, a game warden with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources in Polk County, told the Des Moines Register that officials had been trying to catch the bird but with little success.
“It’s mobile right now and until it gets to where it can’t move around, there’s really no way to catch it,” Swearngin said.
Perhaps surprisingly, this is not the first time a goose has been spotted with an arrow wound.
In December, the Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals offered $1,000 for the arrest of whoever shot a goose near Southampton, N.Y., Patch reports.
And a few days after Christmas, a pair of geese in a South Florida canal were found shot by arrows, according to CBS. One died, and vets were able to save the second animal.
Last February, Delaware residents were concerned by the sight of a goose with an arrow piercing its lower neck, WBOC reports. Officials in this case identified the arrow as one used for target practice, not hunting. The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control said it sees three to four similar cases a year.
Iowa game warden Swearngin notes that while it is illegal to shoot geese inside the city, it is not in farm country.
Canada geese are abundant across North America, and most wild populations are migratory, according to National Geographic. The birds easily adapt to life in urban environments, increasing the potential for potentially dangerous encounters with humans or hunters.
Still, some people seem to have a soft spot for the feathery creatures. There have been several documented instances of people attempting to save geese caught in traffic intersections or on busy highways.