courser

"We get visited by hare coursers probably every other day," Mr Lemon said.

He is hot on the trail of the Jerdon’s courser, a critically endangered nocturnal bird that has not been officially spotted for about a decade.

"I think we're unfortunately in a courser environment. I think our societies have become harder and less understanding, less tolerant, less forgiving."

Police say the vehicles belonged to “hare coursers” who used dogs to chase down and capture rabbits, a practice that’s illegal in England.

A group of suspected hare coursers had to swim to safety after falling foul of a flood-prone stretch of road.