Curlew is in trouble and faces extinction in Ireland

True Irish curlews are in serious trouble and may face imminent extinction, writes Dick Warner

My late father loved hillwalking and spending time in wild and desolate places. He had no particular interest in birds or birdwatching but one thing that always got him excited was the sight and, in particular, the sound of curlews. They seemed to love the same places he did and to epitomise the spirit of the bog and the mountain.

Nearly all of the curlews in Ireland are born in northern Scandinavia or north western Russia. They arrive here in the autumn because the marshes where they breed freeze over. When they arrive they join a small and rapidly diminishing band of true Irish curlews which are in serious trouble and may face imminent extinction.