5-year licences for shooting threatened red-list birds

The National Parks and Wildlife Service is inviting hunters to apply for 5-year licences to blast threatened red-list birds out of the sky.

On the homepage of its website, the NPWS prominently displays a link to a page where wildlife killers can apply for a “licence to hunt fauna on state-owned foreshore”.

The licence allows hunters to “hunt fauna on or over foreshore belonging to the State or on or over land belonging to the State and which is either covered by any inland waters or comprised in the lakeshore accretion from any lake.”

The licence covers shooting at state lakes in 13 counties and foreshore in 14 counties and is valid for 1 year for gun clubs and their members and 5 years for individuals.

Among the “duck, geese and waders” that may be shot and killed are red-listed birds of highest conservation concern – Snipe, Scaup, Pochard, Goldeneye, Shoveler, Golden Plover.

As highlighted in the Birdwatch Ireland/RSPB report “Birds of Conservation Concern in Ireland 4: 2020–2026”, the conservation status of Snipe and Scaup has worryingly gone from amber to red, with breeding populations of snipe in Ireland now “IN SEVERE DECLINE”. Pochard and Goldeneye have both experienced severe declines in their wintering populations.

Also on the kill list are amber-listed birds of medium conservation concern – Mallard (whose status has gone from green to amber), Teal,Wigeon, Gadwall, Pintail and Tufted Duck. Other birds that may be shot under the licence are Jack Snipe, Ruddy Duck, Greylag Geese and Canada Geese.

Hunters are told to “tick box as required” when choosing which species they wish to gun down.

The application form requests from the applicants – who can be as young as 16 years of age – the “location(s) where you propose to hunt”, “species proposed to be hunted” and the “proposed method(s) of hunting (e.g from a boat, walking the shore, decoys etc.}”

The licences to blast threatened birds to death are available not only to hunters in Ireland but also to those who plan to travel here to kill Irish wildlife. Applicants from outside the State are reminded that they “must include a copy of their current European Firearms Pass”.

The 43 state lakes where the shooting of birds may be carried out are listed as

Cavan: Bimerkey, Brackley, Gowna, Kinale, Oughter, Sillan, Sheelin, Tacker
Clare: Derg
Donegal: Derg, Esk
Galway: Corrib, Derg
Kerry: Currane
Leitrim: Allen, Belhavel, Boderg (Bofin), Garadice, Gill, Gulladoo, Macnean Upper, Melvin, Rinn, Scannal, Suir
Meath: Sheelin
Longford: Forbes, Gowna, Kinale, Ree
Mayo: Feeag
Roscommon: Allen, Key, Ree
Sligo: Arrow, Gill
Tipperary: Derg
Westmeath: Kinale, Derravaragh, Ennel, Owel, Ree, Sheelin

Shooters can also request to kill birds on foreshores in Counties Clare (including Shannon Estuary), Cork, Donegal, Dublin (Malahide Estuary), Galway, Kerry (including Shannon Estuary), Kilkenny (including Foreshore of River Suir – Grannagh to Lingaun River [Piltown], Foreshore of River Barrow – Great Island to Ferrybridge, Foreshore of River Nore – Tinnaranny [Rosbercon] to Ballingath Quay), Limerick (Shannon Estuary), Louth, Mayo, Meath, Sligo, Waterford, Wexford and Wicklow

“There is no justification for allowing any birds – and particularly birds of conservation concern – to be blasted out of the sky, purely to provide entertainment to those who get their kicks from killing,” we have stated in an appeal to Minister of State for Heritage Malcolm Noonan (Green Party). We pleaded with him to “give birds a break and reduce carnage in the countryside”, adding that “the future of many species are depending on your positive action.”

These beautiful birds are being reduced to bloodied carcasses for the amusement of shooters who consider it fun to destroy our wildlife heritage. Shame on Ministers O’Brien and Noonan for allowing this recreational killing.

Read the “Birds of Conservation Concern in Ireland 4: 2020–2026” report at

Click to access BOCCI-2020-2026.pdf

URGENT ACTION ALERT

Contact Heritage Ministers Darragh O’Brien and Malcolm Noonan today and demand that they stop the killing of birds – or, at the very least, remove the amber- and red-list birds from the open season shooting list. Encourage them to give full protection to all Irish birds.

Minister Darragh O’Brien (Fianna Fail, Dublin Fingal)
Minister for Heritage
Tel: (01) 618 3802 OR (086) 251 9893
Email: darragh.obrien@oireachtas.ie; minister@housing.gov.ie; natureconservation@housing.gov.ie; WildlifeLicence@housing.gov.ie
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DarraghOBrienTD
Twitter: http://twitter.com/DarraghOBrienTD

Malcolm Noonan TD (Green Party, Carlow Kilkenny)
Minister of State for Heritage
Tel: (01) 618 3148 OR (01) 618 3156
Email: mos@housing.gov.ie; malcolm.noonan@oireachtas.ie
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/votemalcolmnoonan1/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/noonan_malcolm