Hunter Accidentally Kills Son After Mistaking Him For A Boar In France

A hunting expedition in France's Ardèche region ended in tragedy Thursday after a hunter accidentally killed his son.

According to daily newspaper Ouest-France, the 61-year-old saw a shadow pass and fired his weapon. However, the figure was not a wild boar, as the hunter expected, but his 35-year-old son.

Though resuscitation efforts were attempted, the man died at the scene. His father collapsed shortly after and has since been hospitalized while prosecutors investigate the circumstances of the fatal shooting.

The accidental shooting follows another hunting incident earlier this week that led to the death of a 6-year-old in northern France. The young boy died in a hospital Wednesday, succumbing to injuries he sustained Sunday when a hunter's gun was accidentally discharged.

Earlier this year, France's National Office for Hunting and Wildlife reported that there were 179 hunting accidents in the last hunting season, which lasted from June 2012 to May 2013, 21 of which were fatal.