'They are out of control, at epidemic levels': Wild deer causing daily accidents in Kerry, councillors told

Deer have been causing numerous collisions all over the county, with some insurance companies refusing to cover damage to cars, Kerry County Council heard

'Not one square inch' of Killarney National Park near major roads has been fenced off by the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Kerry County Council has heard. Picture: Dave Walsh

Wild deer numbers are so out of control in Killarney that animals are being found on roads 40kms from the national park, it has been claimed.

“Not one square inch” of Killarney National Park near major roads has been fenced off by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), Kerry County Council has heard.

Accidents are now occurring daily, with cars being written off, it was claimed at the meeting in Tralee.

It has been seven years since Killarney Municipal District representatives met family members connected to a fatal accident linked to deer on the N72 near Foss, independent councillor Brendan Cronin told the full meeting of Kerry County Council.

Various bodies, including Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), the council, the NPWS, as well as Iarnród Éireann, were approached to take action, but no part of the park has been fenced to keep the deer in, he said.

The only action had been the erection of a single solar-powered sign on the N72 warning of deer. Iarnród Éireann erected fencing and took real action to protect the railways and passengers, Mr Cronin said.

No one knows how many thousands of sika and red are wandering the roads, he said.

“They are out of control, at epidemic levels. It’s no longer one national route near Killarney," he claimed.

Councillors from across the county told of road incidents with deer crossing and jumping on cars. Insurance companies have been reluctant and, in some cases, refused, to provide compensation, it was claimed.

Listowel councillor Michael Leane said two of his constituents had a run-in with deer on roads, and in one incident, a young woman's car had been written off, with the insurance company refusing to cover the damage, he said.

Kerry County Council is in the process of carrying out a pilot scheme in cooperation with Iarnród Eireann, University College Cork and Bird Control Ireland, council director of operational services Paul Neary said.

"The scheme involves installing virtual fence technology on two 1km stretches of roadway to investigate the reduction in deer collisions after the installation of the system. The pilot schemes will be rolled out in the coming months, and the areas will be monitored through a UCC research programme,” he said.

Meanwhile, just under 400 deer were culled in Killarney National Park in 2025, NPWS figures show.

The majority of wild deer taken out in the 10,000-hectare park in Killarney were the introduced sika, but also the much larger and native Killarney red deer.

Wild deer in the State are protected under the Wildlife Acts, the NPWS said. 

This article is funded by the Local Democracy Scheme