A 35-year-old hunter was taken into police custody on Thursday after two environmental activists were wounded by shotgun pellets in a hunting area at Cape Greco, with police investigating whether the shooting was deliberate.

The two activists, both 32 and French nationals, were hit at about 7am on Wednesday.

One suffered a cut to the head and the other a superficial wound to the right shoulder, both of which were subsequently treated at Famagusta general hospital and discharged.

A third activist, a British national, was present with them at the scene but sustained no injuries.

Police received the report at about 8am, and arrested the hunter, a Greek Cypriot, on Wednesday night.

He has been taken in for questioning and shall remain in custody as the investigation proceeds.

Speaking to the Cyprus Mail, the game and fauna service said it was called to the site after the activists alerted it to a hunter using an illegal bird-calling device. The service arrested that man, and its involvement was solely limited to him.

Police told the Cyprus Mail that as the activists were leaving, after the first hunter had been detained, a second hunter, the 35-year-old currently detained, “shot in their general direction”

The use of electronic bird callers is prohibited in Cyprus. They are used to lure protected migratory species into range of hunters, and the activists were reported to have been in the area monitoring such activity.

Famagusta CID is leading the inquiry, and police have said the main aim is to establish whether the shooting was accidental or intentional.