BBC’s wildlife series Springwatch faced backlash this week after airing distressing footage of a brutal animal death.

Presenters Chris Packham and Michaela Strachan returned with an update on a short-eared owl’s nest first introduced last week.

Packham explained, “There were six youngsters in the nest,” before revealing: “Last night there were only two left in the nest,” noting that the others had dispersed to avoid predators.

However, Strachan shocked viewers with what unfolded next. “It really surprised us,” she admitted, explaining that the weaker chick had been eaten alive by its stronger sibling after becoming “weak and defenceless.”

The unsettling footage sparked a wave of backlash on social media. One viewer wrote: “Baby owl eating its sibling alive ffs. Give us a 5-minute warning next time.”

Another commented: “Really don’t think they should have shown the owl being eaten alive,” while a second added: “Jeeze could have done without being shown that older owl chick pecking its fellow younger chick to death.”

A third viewer expressed concern over the show’s family-friendly reputation, writing: “Just let the kids watch some nice relaxing #Springwatch before bed… Oh. Owl cannibalism.”

Another shared: “So I think let’s switch off from the doom and gloom at #swfc and decide to watch a bit of #springwatch to calm me down and what do I see, a baby owl eat it’s sibling and another dead baby owl fed to it’s siblings! Give us Owls a break @ChrisGPackham.”

“Got to love #Springwatch. Just watched my first 5 minutes of this series and I’ve already seen one short eared owl chick peck a sibling to death and eat it’s cadaver,” another posted.

One more penned: “Jeeze could have done without being shown that older owl chick pecking its fellow younger chick to death. It’s different it dying and then being eaten but to be eaten alive is horrible #springwatch.”

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Footage from the nest cameras captured the harrowing moment the larger chick began pecking at its weaker sibling, which remained alive as it was pulled apart.

As the distressing scenes aired, Strachan narrated the sequence for viewers.

She said: “As you can see, that little one became weak and defenceless, and the stronger sibling took complete advantage.

Started pecking at the younger one, it was still alive, and I’m really sorry to say, I know it’s hard to watch, but it pecked it to death, and that was really surprising for us.”

She continued: “They were fed four times. The little one could’ve taken some of that food, but the bigger one took it, although there was plenty of prey around.

“They were branching out, so they were old enough to survive. We thought all of them were going to survive.”

The show is currently broadcasting from the National Trust-owned Longshaw Estate in the Peak District National Park, where it will remain until 12 June.

Strachan praised the location, calling the Peak District’s “habitat variety” a perfect match for the programme.

The cameras recently captured the family of short-eared owls for the first time, with Packham calling them “remarkable.”

This marks the first appearance of this owl species on Springwatch since the show began airing in 2005.