A spate of crimes in the Manx countryside have seen dogs used to kill mountain hares.

The mountain, or blue hare, is confined to the upland moors in the Isle of Man and numbers seem to be decreasing.

It's feared these and the related brown hare have been targeted by illegal hare coursers - who used fast dogs such as whippets to catch and kill the animals.

All forms of hare coursing are illegal in the Island but Wildlife Crimes officer PC Ian Scott says they still get reports of illicit activity.