Deer fencing system to save oaks

A NEW deer fencing system being erected in selected areas of Killarney National Park is aimed at saving and regenerating some of the country’s most famous oak woods.

The woods — the largest surviving examples of ancient native forests — are already under serious threat from rhododendron (rhodo) infestation.

But, the latest deer fencing system is intended to keep deer out of woodland areas that have already been cleared of the rhodo and thereby allow young oak and ash trees to grow on the woodland floor.

“As well as protecting the woods, we must also keep renewing them,” said National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) regional manager Eamon Meskell.

“We hope this fencing system, which is environmentally friendly and is already working successfully in countries such as Hungary and Poland, will be a major help.”

Around 100 hectares of woodland, divided into 10 plots, are being fenced off and a grant for the project has been obtained from the Forest Service.

The work is being carried out in the Derrycunnihy, Ullauns and Gortroe areas, where some important oakwoods are located.

Park rangers have investigated migration routes of the deer and have left corridors between fenced off areas to allow deer travel from the mountains to the lowlands.

Many of the woodlands in Killarney National Park have been infested with rhodo, which is one of the most serious conservation issues facing the NPWS.

Introduced from Turkey in the 19th century, the rhodo grows prolifically in poor soil and each flower can produce hundreds of tiny seeds.

The plant grows so thickly that very little light gets through and plants on the woodland floor die as a result. No young trees can grow, leaving old trees to die without being replaced and thus threatening the woodlands with extinction.

For the past 30 years, the NPWS and volunteers have been carrying out rhodo clearance programmes in Killarney and, under park management programmes, the aim is to have 75% clearance by 2010.

However, the rhodo is proving very difficult to eradicate and is again re-appearing in many areas from which it had previously been cleared.