Bad shot: Trump Jr accused of illegally hunting rare ducks in protected Venice lagoon

Donald Trump Jr has been accused of illegally hunting rare ducks in Italy.

The son of the United States President is back in the headlines not long after he made a controversial visit to Greenland following Trump's comments on his desire to gain control of the Arctic country.

This time, Trump Jr appears to have been caught on video shooting ducks during a hunting trip last December in the protected area of the Venice lagoon.

The images have made the rounds in Italy and triggered political controversy, especially in the Veneto Regional Council.

Andrea Zanoni, of the Green Europe party, says he has reported Trump Jr for allegedly killing a protected species of duck while hunting in the lagoon.

In the Parliament in Rome, the Green and Left Alliance party called for an intervention by the Italian Minister of the Environment, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin.

What has Trump Jr been accused of?

The 48-year-old son of the US president was on holiday with his new partner and a group of friends last December in Venice, where he took part in a hunt for quail and ducks, both protected species in the lagoon.

A video was later published by Field Ethos - marketed as the "premier lifestyle publication for the unapologetic man" - where Trump Jr can be seen in a camouflage suit holding a rifle and firing shots upwards.

Trump also speaks to the camera, complete with a caption bearing his name, as he is surrounded by birds. There is also a teaser video on YouTube entitled "Italian job teaser - Duck hunting Venice".

According to regional councillor Zanoni, "the various scenes of hunting in the Venice lagoon were probably filmed recently in Valle Pirimpiè in Campagna Lupia, in an area that is protected by European regulations and is part of an EU Natura 2000 network site, as a special area of conservation called the middle-lower lagoon of Venice".

"In the video, Trump Jr is seen with a ruddy shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea) in the foreground – a duck that is very rare throughout Europe and protected by the European Union birds directive and Italian wildlife protection law," he wrote on social media.

Zanoni says he has filed a question with regional authorities to "know what sanctions to impose" including potentially suspending or revoking the license of the wildlife shooting company and "those responsible for acts in violation of Italian and European regulations".