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THE white-tailed sea eagle was once a conspicuous part of the Irish landscape, before it was driven to extinction in the early 20th century by human persecution.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the return of white-tailed eagles to Killarney National Park and the iconic bird of prey will fly centre stage this week.

The last in the very popular Autumn Talks series talks at Killarney House and Gardens takes place this Thursday night, November 9, and Dr Allan Mee, project manager of the White Tailed Eagle Reintroduction Programme, will deliver the lecture.

The programme saw the reintroduction of 100 white-tailed eagles from Norway to Killarney National Park. A total of six white-tailed eagle chicks successfully fledged from five nests in three different counties in 2016, making this the most successful year to date in the long-term reintroduction programme for this iconic bird of prey in Ireland.

Over the past six years white-tailed sea eagles have dispersed throughout Ireland and beyond. Many eagles have been reported from Northern Ireland and at least six birds have travelled to Scotland. The programme was marred and threatened at times from poisoning and shooting of these beautiful birds in the early days.

In 2016 nine white-tailed eagle pairs held territory in Ireland across four counties: Kerry (six pairs), Galway (one), Clare (one) and Cork (one). Eight pairs laid eggs in Kerry (five), Cork (one), Clare (one) and Galway (one). Two breeding “pairs” in Kerry consisted of trios: a male and two females at one site on the Iveragh peninsula, and a female and two males at another site on the Beara peninsula. 13 Irish-bred White-tailed Eagle chicks have fledged to date: two in 2013, one in 2014, four in 2015 and six in 2016.

Dr Mee, project manager at Golden Eagle Trust, monitors the birds and has been tracking the release population since the project began 10 years ago.

Parking is advised at the Beech Road car park.

 
Above: A white-tailed sea eagle. Pic: Valerie O'Sullivan