It was a gruesome scene at one of the largest parks in Kamloops when a woman came upon marmot remains, skinned and draped over swings at the playground.

They were found at McArthur Island Park, known for its large marmot population, in a scene described as “disturbing” and unlikely to have been the doing of a predator.

“Someone had put the body parts on the playground area, like on the swings and in the slides,” Peter Sulzle told iNFOnews.ca.

Sulzle, who operates a local nature magazine Field Light Magazine said a friend of his found the remains this past weekend then sent him photos from the scene.

“There’s nothing out there that would skin a marmot so cleanly. Most of the time, like if it’s a hawk or an owl, it’s picked off in pieces,” Sulzle said. “This looked like a chicken at a grocery store — so clean, and very disturbing. Of course, others appeared to be cut up and distributed.”

iNFOnews.ca has so far been unable to reach the woman who found them, but did review a pair of photos from the scene. In one, the marmot’s body was skinned with the body left behind, while a head and fur were left in a swing for toddlers.

Kamloops RCMP confirmed a report of a mutilated marmot is being investigated with cooperation from BC SPCA.

Police were called to the park around 8 a.m. Friday, July 10, and so far there have been no similar reports, according to spokesperson Cpl. Dana Napier. She didn’t reveal any further details about the investigation.

Requests for comment from BC Conservation Officer Service and BC SPCA weren’t immediately returned.