The killing of the ill-fated bird has brought the plight of the endangered avian species to national attention amid plans for legal action and reports of death threats.
Around 23,000 domino tiles were knocked over by the bird after it flew into the FEC exhibition centre in Leeuwarden, in the country’s north on November 14.
Organisers were 200,000 tiles short of their 4,321,000 Guiness World Record target, and anxious to save the remaining four million set-up dominoes, made a ‘split-second’ decision to have the bird shot.
“That bird was flying around and knocking over a lot of dominoes. More than 100 people from 12 countries had worked for more than a month setting them up,” said Jeroen van Waardenberg, a spokesman for the Endemol production company in charge of the event.
Hans Peeters, director of the Netherlands Bird Protection agency called the shooting ‘ridiculous’.
“They could have captured it or sedated it or something,” Mr Peeters said.
Sentiment surrounding the incident is anything but sedate, with the Expatica online news service reporting that at least seven organisations have become involved in the saga.
Death threats have also been made against the man who pulled the air rifle trigger.
The Duke Fauna Beheer animal management company told Expatica that it had gone to the police about the death threats its employee had received.
“We have not made an official complaint as that would be no use. But if an idiot comes around here, we want a direct line to the police so they can come quickly to help us,” the company reportedly said.
The Dutch animal protection agency said it was investigating the sparrow’s death and is planning to submit the case to national prosecutors.
“Under Dutch law, you need a permit to kill this kind of bird, and a permit can only be granted when there’s a danger to public health or a crop,” agency spokesman Niels Dorland said.
In the Netherlands, the house sparrow has become less than common and was placed on the nation’s endangered species list last year.
“There were more than two million breeding pairs in the Netherlands 20 years ago,” Mr Peeters said.
“Now there’s half a million to a million at most.”
The country’s birdwatchers’ association has swung behind Mr Peeters ‘call to action’ and is preparing a campaign to draw attention to the Netherlands’ dwindling sparrow numbers.
Endemol is going ahead with its televised broadcast of the domino world record attempt on November 20 but said it was boosting security for the event.
The company said it hoped to thwart any potential sabotage after Dutch Radio DJ Ruud de Wild offered a reward of 3,000 euros (A$4,800) to anyone who topples the dominoes before the official start.
A memorial or mention of the dead sparrow is being considered for inclusion in the broadcast, Mr Van Waardenberg said.