More Norwegian Eagles flown to Kerry for reintroduction
Twenty-three White-tailed Eagle chicks have arrived in Co. Kerry, as part of a long-term wildlife reintroduction project that’s being led by the Irish National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS).
The eaglets were collected, under license by Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, from nests throughout the Trondheim area of West Central Norway. They arrived at Kerry Airport on a chartered flight last Friday and will be looked after in specially-made flight pens for six weeks until their release in to the wild in mid-August.
“This is an incredibly exciting and technically complex project whose success depends on the collaboration of many groups, including our NPWS teams, local farmers, conservationists and communities, the Norwegian authorities and many other partners in Norway,” Minister for Heritage Malcolm Noonan said.
“Their collective efforts over many years have brought us to this point. I’d like to pay tribute to all involved and acknowledge their commitment to making this project a success, now and in the years to come.”
100 young white-tailed eagles were released in the Killarney National Park during phase one between 2007 and 2011 and this has resulted in at least ten breeding pairs becoming established in Kerry, Galway, Clare, Tipperary and Cork producing at least 30 chicks between them.
However, a recent scientific review of the reintroduction project indicated the small population is still vulnerable to factors such as illegal poisoning and the breeding population was negatively impacted by Avian Influenza in 2018 and storm Hannah in 2019.
1 July 2021
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