Birdwatch Ireland has called for greater vigilance on the part of farmers, the general public and State agencies to protect the country’s peregrine falcon population.

The call follows reports that the illegal theft of wild peregrine falcon chicks from nests has increased exponentially in Britain.

The stolen chicks from hundreds of nests are believed to have been smuggled illegally to the Gulf States, and other destinations in the Middle East, where they command astronomical prices.

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The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) insisted that staff were not aware of any problems with peregrine falcon nests in Ireland being raided for eggs or chicks.

“NPWS does not have evidence to suggest that theft from nests is currently a major issue in Ireland,” an NPWS spokesperson told the Irish Farmers Journal.

However, Birdwatch Ireland is not convinced. “Common sense would suggest that if there is a problem with peregrine falcons being taken from the wild in the UK and sold for huge sums of money for export on the black market, there must also be a similar problem in this jurisdiction,” said Niall Hatch of Birdwatch Ireland.

“Certainly, my colleagues have had experience of peregrine chicks abruptly going missing from wild nesting sites in circumstances that would strongly suggest that people have taken them, such as fences being cut, branches being broken, etc,” he added.

Prized

Peregrine falcons from Ireland and other northern European countries are highly prized by wealthy falconry enthusiasts in the Middle East and Gulf States because they are “fast-flying, powerful and robust”, Hatch explained.

“We would urge farmers and landowners to please keep an eye out for suspicious activity on their lands and to report any concerns to the NPWS and the gardaí,” he said. Figures supplied by the NPWS confirm the growing international demand for falcons. Legal exports from Ireland of purebred peregrine falcons and peregrine falcons crossed with gyrfalcons have quadrupled over the last five years.

There were 59 falcons exported legally from Ireland in 2020, but this figure grew to 226 last year.

“In Ireland, exports of peregrine falcons are from captive breeding facilities which often use artificial insemination as the reproductive method,” the NPWS said.

However, when asked if the exported birds were DNA profiled to confirm their provenance, the NPWS said it “does not currently maintain a ‘DNA database’ from wild falcons”.

A national survey in 2017 estimated that there were 425 breeding pairs of peregrine falcons in Ireland.

Numbers of peregrine falcons have bounced back from under 50 pairs in 1980. The recovery is attributed, in part, to the ban on pesticides such as DDT.

Birdwatch Ireland calls for end to controversial lottery

The ending of a controversial lottery which allows up to five peregrine falcon chicks to be taken from the wild each year is being sought by Birdwatch Ireland.

The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) accepted that five such licences are available each year but it added that only one peregrine falcon chick was taken from a nest last year.

NPWS claimed the practice was necessary to prevent inbreeding among birds in captivity.

However, Birdwatch Ireland said the lottery was “completely unnecessary” given that peregrine falcons can be bred successfully in captivity.