Environmentalists are outraged after 1,000-year-old rock formations were bulldozed down ? destroying longtail nests in the process ? over the weekend.

The damage to Gilbert?s Bay in Somerset was discovered by area neighbours.

They claim area resident Henry Talbot bulldozed the rocks to undertake construction ? in apparent blatant disregard of nature and Planning regulations.

?The cliff has been pulled partly away,? Government Conservation Officer Jeremy Madeiros said yesterday. ?There are definitely as many as five or six longtail nests which were destroyed, with at least several which were active.... It is possible there may have been chicks or eggs inside.?

He added: ?It?s really asinine to remove stuff like that. You can?t really repair that sort of damage, those rock formations form over 1000s of years.?

There is also the potential danger of erosion to the cliff face, he said.

?It is not only illegal without being looked at by the proper authority, it is also extremely dangerous. It could create cracks or fractures, causing a real hazard to that area for years afterwards.?

Neighbours said they were shocked to find their beach access blocked by boulders from the former natural rock formations on the weekend.

Mr. Talbot owns the vast majority of the beach at Gilbert?s Bay above the mean high tide mark.

Neighbour Glenn Robinson owns a small portion, however, and about five families in the neighbourhood have legal access to the beach.

Although Police ordered Mr. Talbot to remove the boulders on Sunday, the neighbours claim he only removed some ? which he cemented in place using cement mixed from beach sand to create a new line of rocks on the beach ? effectively lowering the mean high tide mark and extending his property by an estimated 20 feet.

?He is trying to reclaim land on open space that is deemed suitable for everyone,? said one neighbour, who did not wish to be named.

?High tide now is lapping the boulders.?

?He?s completely violated the law which says everyone has access to the high tide mark,? Mr. Robinson said. ?That should be right out of the question. I?m sure Planning won?t allow that.?

It is not yet clear whether Mr. Talbot, who holds the Government contract to transport recyclable trash to the recycling centre, went through the proper channels to obtain Planning permission before doing the work on the beach. yesterday attempted to obtain his files from Planning but the relevant files had been removed to allow environmental officers to examine them.

A list of his files does show, however, that after several attempts Mr. Talbot received final planning permission in 1999 to build a new boat house and jetty in Sandys.

Mr. Talbot did not return calls from last night.

Regardless of whether there has been a Planning violation, the environmental damage has been done, conservationists said.

Jennifer Grey of the Audubon Society said almost 50 percent of the longtail nests on the South Shore were believed destroyed after Hurricane Fabian.

?The last thing we should be doing is destroying the few nests they have left,? she added.