Losing Ireland’s Curlew: A Bird on the Brink

The Curlew (Numenius arquata) is a bird in crisis. Since 2007 they have been red-listed by the IUCN due to their small and declining breeding population. There has been widespread declines all across Europe but it’s the populations in Ireland that are worst hit. Estimates put the decline of native breeding pairs to 86% over the last 25 years. There are only a few hundred breeding pairs left in the country. The Curlew is the largest of the European wading birds. They nest in damp moorland and grassland habitats feeding on a range of worms, invertebrates, crabs and molluscs using their long curved bills to probe the soft ground for food.

Source: Coast Monkey, 24th October, 2016
http://coastmonkey.ie/losing-the-curlew-a-bird-on-the-brink/