Local coordinators have been appointed to lead dedicated Deer Management Units (DMUs) in areas of the country that are well-known as hotspots for wild deer, including in areas of Cork and Kerry.
Appointed by FRS Co-Op, two dedicated DMUs have been established for the south of the country, known as S1 in Cork and S2 in Kerry. The S1 and S2 DMUs are part of FRS Co-Op’s contract to establish a total of 15 DMUs in areas of the country that are well-known as hotspots for wild deer – a key recommendation of the final report recently published by the Deer Management Strategy Group.
For the past number of decades, Ireland’s wild deer population has increased significantly to the point where there is no accurate data on the exact deer population in the country. Despite this, there is clear evidence that the wild deer population has grown considerably in recent decades and led to a corresponding increase in negative impacts, including biodiversity loss, damage to natural woodlands and farmland, and increased road accidents involving deer.
Several reports of deer causinf problems for motorists on roads have been published in The Avondhu previously reported on incidents involving deer in Conna, west Waterford, etc.
DMU’s have been established in areas where the underlying data (e.g. native woodland monitoring, commercial forest inventories, road traffic accident statistics) demonstrate that deer impacts are particularly significant.
FRS Co-Op was awarded the contract in February this year to implement and deliver a number of recommendations from the Deer Management Strategy Group, including to establish 15 DMU’s in hotspot areas of the country and to appoint local coordinators to work with landowners and hunters.
FRS Co-Op’s role will be to connect landowners affected by wild deer in hotspot areas with licenced hunters. The co-op will not directly employ any hunters as part of its contract but will oversee the coordination with local hunters and hunting groups who wish to participate in the deer management programme.
The local coordinators appointed by FRS Co-Op to lead the southern DMUs will be engaging with farmers and landowners in the area to identify issues relating to deer that currently exist and to help facilitate deer management by engaging with local hunters.
Deer management will be implemented in hotspots areas with the goal of bringing the wild deer population down to a sustainable level. Waterford, Tipperary and Kilkenny will be under the SE1 DMU. While Limerick will be under S2 and SW1.
Any landowners seeking further information on FRS Co-Op’s deer management programme can visit www.frscoop.ie/deer
