VILE yobs were seen throwing large rocks at a large family of geese, in front of horrified children.

Furious families witnessed the incident at the popular Canvey Lake.

It has now prompted serious safety fears for the wildlife and wild birds there.

Betty Smith, 60, of Long Road, Canvey said: “I was there with my family and it was so horrific.

“I’ve never seen anything like it - the children were upset too.

“This is just disgusting, I still cannot believe what I saw down there.

“Canvey Town Council does wonderful work there but a number of idiots seem keen to ruin this.

“I am unsure if the birds were harmed at all, and of course it would be heart-breaking if they were hurt at all.

“I hope not but this could put people off from going to the lake altogether.”

Other residents and councillors are now calling for parents to take control of their unruly teenagers.

Brian Greenburg, 60, of Canvey Road, Canvey, also slammed the teens for terrorising the birds.

He said: “These are beautiful creatures and all wildlife deserves to live in peace, without people like this making their lives hell.

“Why these kids are not busy doing something else, I will never know.

“I feel so sorry for the geese and chicks, it would be such a shame if they were forced to leave the lake.”

Former veteran councillor Ray Howard said he shares the horrified feelings of the island families.

He said: “We are so proud of our lake.

“Canvey Town Council works so hard and has done great work there and to have this happen is disgusting.

“I don’t know where this sort of mentally comes from.

“We cannot keep dealing with this anti-social behaviour and the parents should be taking hold of the situation.

“I do believe that responsibility does lie with the parents.”

The incident at the island lake has been posted on social media.

The town council was not available for further comment. Anyone with information can call police on 101.