INDIAN TRAIL -- A waterfowl rescue group is offering a $1,000 reward to find out who is shooting and killing geese with razor-tipped arrows in western Union County.

Carolina Waterfowl Rescue Director Jennifer Gordon said Sunday that the group has raised enough money from donations to offer the reward.

And some residents in the area say the shooter is a possible threat to people, too.

For the past year, the rescue group has tracked reports of more than a dozen birds found shot around neighborhoods off Wesley Chapel Road in Indian Trail, and at least four of those have been with the arrows. Other birds and wildlife shot with pellets and other shells have also been found.

Anton Kotesky's sons found one of the geese two weeks ago, with an arrow still lodged in it. Kotesky and his wife took the bird to the rescue group, but it later died.

"Some of these arrows have been broad-head arrows," said Kotesky. "So (we want to make sure) that it's not going to come in contact with a human, because you could certainly kill someone."

Because so many of the birds have ended up near Kotesky's neighborhood, Sheridan, Gordon feels the culprit lives nearby.

"If they're all getting shot around here, it's probably the same person," she said. Gordon believes that because so many animals have been killed over the past year, someone must know something. She hopes the reward prompts someone to come forward.

"I just don't see with the volume of animals that are dead that somebody doesn't know or hasn't seen something, and they're just nervous about coming forward," she said.

Part of the problem is that the new neighborhoods along Wesley Chapel Road are still surrounded by a lot of open area where people likely hunted before development pushed them out. But Gordon isn't quick to point the finger at hunters.

"It's not about hunting," said Gordon. "It's about somebody doing it for fun, and these animals are just suffering."

Besides, hunting season is over in Union County, said Sgt. Barry Rowell of the NC Wildlife Resources Commission. Anyone caught hunting out of season can face charges in both state and federal courts and hundreds of dollars in fines, he said.

Firing a dangerous weapon is also illegal in Indian Trail, said Gordon. The Wildlife Resources Commission and the Union County Sheriff's Office are both investigating.

Either way, Gordon and Kotesky are concerned about stray shots hitting more than birds.

"There's no excuse for people shooting weapons off around here where little kids are playing," said Gordon. "It's just not an appropriate place for this kind of activity."

Anyone with information is asked to call the Union County Sheriff's Office at 704-283-3768. You can also contact the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission at 800-662-7137.