THE NEXT few months are critical for the survival of Kerry’s fledging population of white-tailed sea eagles, according to conservationists.
Hunted to extinction 100 years ago, the eagles have been reintroduced to the Killarney mountains under an ambitious five-year plan.
It is being organised jointly by the Golden Eagle Trust and the National Parks and Wildlife Service, and managed by Co Limerick-born scientist Dr Allan Mee who was closely involved with the reintroduction of the Californian condor in the USA. “Kerry is ideal for the eagle – it’s the nearest you’ll get to Norway,” Dr Mee said.
Last year’s lambing season saw a quarter of the 15 birds brought here from Norway in the early summer of 2007 succumb to poison from poisoned animal carcasses.
The laying of indiscriminate poisoned meat bait is banned since January 2008 and the ban was introduced specifically to protect reintroduced carrion birds. However, there is a tradition in the hill sheep farms of Kerry of leaving bait to lure grey crows and foxes.
Placard-carrying farmers organised by their farmers unions met the eagles at Kerry Airport when they landed in June 2007, demanding grants as in the Scottish Isle of Mull, where the sea eagles have become a major tourist attraction, and claiming their sheep would be lost to the birds of prey.
Independent TD Jackie Healy-Rae, who supported the farmers, claimed at a meeting in Tralee to have in his hand an account of a baby being snatched by an eagle 100 years ago in Killarney.
“There were a lot of myths. Some of the stuff did not help the eagle,” Dr Mee said. However, he did not believe the poisoning of the four sea eagles was deliberate. “Individually, the farmers are well disposed. The threats to the eagles or from the eagles have not materialised. We got through the lambing season without any sheep being attacked. Spring will be the test. Now farmers can’t but know from all the publicity that the poison will kill the birds.”
Dr Mee lives in the Black Valley – the four birds poisoned were in the next valley – the four poisoned birds were in the next valley – and each morning he tracks the eagles from his valley base. They are fitted with a backpack radio transmitter, so this spring he will be able to call to the areas they are frequenting to make sure the farmers know not to leave out poison.
Dr Mee says scientists are learning a lot from the eagles. This year’s new batch of 20 has largely stayed in the Killarney area, happy to roost high in the Scots pines and scout along Flesk river and long range of the Killarney lakes.
The loss of two eagles in the Glencar area was a terrible blow, he says. “This winter will tell. If we loose some to natural causes, we can recover, but if it’s poisoning again, it will be very hard on the project.”