Eagles poisoned ‘without a shadow of a doubt’

THE director of the project to reintroduce eagles to Killarney National Park yesterday said two white-tailed eagles found dead near Glencar, Co Kerry, had been poisoned “without a shadow of a doubt”.

However, Dr Allan Mee declined to speculate on whether the poisoning had been deliberate.

“It was probably accidental. I’d hate to think anyone would do this deliberately,” he said.

The carcasses of the birds have been taken to the Veterinary Laboratory in Cork for postmortem examinations and the results of toxicology tests are expected to be known next week.

Eagles became extinct in the Killarney area more than a century ago, largely because of shooting and poisoning. The plan to restore them to the area was enthusiastically welcomed last year by conservationists and tourism interests.

Farmers, however, had serious reservations, claiming the eagles would kill lambs. Some farmers threatened to poison the eagles, or kill them in some other way, and there are fears the threats have been carried through.

A sheep carcass was found about 10 metres from one of the dead eagles and samples have also been taken from that carcass for toxicology tests.

The Department of the Environment has made it illegal for landowners to leave out poisoned meat baits. Farmers lay poison for crows and ravens, but it can also kill other wildlife and domestic animals.

Dr Mee said he was unsure whether someone deliberately laid out poison for eagles, which feed on sheep and deer carrion, or whether they were targeting crows or ravens.

He appealed to landowners to stop using poisoned meat as bait and pointed out that safer methods were available.

Meanwhile, Kerry IFA chairman John Stack said he would not condone any act of sabotage.

“I’d be very disappointed if a farmer is found to be responsible for this,” said Mr Stack.