Efforts to boost endangered Corncrake population in West beginning to pay off

Efforts to boost the endangered Corncrake population in the West and North West region are beginning to pay off.

It’s after a new survey from the National Parks and Wildlife Service shows a slight boost to numbers last year.

The Corncrake is a shy and secretive farmland bird with a distinctive call.

Once it would have been heard in every part of Ireland, but from the early 20th century, numbers began to drop.

They disappeared from most areas and are now generally limited to the West and North West areas in very small numbers.

But, thanks to a major collaborative conservation programme involving farmers and local communities, numbers are starting to grow.

A new survey from the NPWS shows the national population is up by 7 percent – which translates to 15 Corncrakes.

Since 2018, the number of Corncrake territories recorded in core breeding areas in Galway, Donegal and Mayo have grown by 45 percent.

Last year, a corncrake was spotted on the Aran Islands for the first time in 25 years