Mystery of 'crop circles' on Yorkshire farm solved as police issue warning

Police have ruled out extraterrestrial involvement in the markings that have appeared on farmland near Todwick in South Yorkshire.

Sgt James Shirley, from the South Yorkshire Police off road bikes team, said the patterns have been caused by people on quad bikes illegally pursuing rabbits and deer at night, with lurcher dogs.

He said the practice had been made illegal some time ago and added those who had caused the damage were also on the land without permission.

He said: “Hunting with dogs is poaching. It’s also criminal damage to thousands of pounds of crops.

“As if farming is not hard enough. I’m sure many of you will have seen Clarkson’s Farm, how stressful farming can be and how heartbreaking this is for a landowner to wake up to.

“We appreciate the gravity of seeing a few vehicle tracks heading off into a field may not prompt a call into the police, but at night at this time of year, if you see lights in farmers fields then ring it in. It is more than likely poachers.

“As you can see from our drone, the scale of damage is not fully appreciated until you get the full picture. This is just one of 12 fields on the south of the county around Todwick that was done this week.

“Despite popular belief, we are out at night. We will catch them. Just need your additional eyes and ears to give us a helping hand.”