Shooting of white-tailed eagle ‘significant blow’

The shooting of a young, white-tailed eagle in Co Tipperary was yesterday described as a “significant blow’’ to a groundbreaking project to reintroduce the species to Ireland.

The bird — one of the first two eaglets to fledge successfully from a nest in Co Clare last July — has been found dead on the north-eastern shoreof Lough Derg, near Ballinderry.

Its carcass contained 45 to 50 shotgun pellets. The impact of the shooting broke one of its legs and wings, but the bird is