Shock voiced over 'severe blow' to rare eagle population after pair of birds suspected to have been poisoned in Northern Ireland

The PSNI said that they were contacted shortly before 2pm on Monday, after the discovery of the two white-tailed eagles found beside one another in the Glenwherry area, a townland roughly midway between Larne and Ballymena.

Police said “the birds had no obvious signs of injury and suspicions have been raised given the unlikely position where they were found”.

Though they did not mention poison specifically, there have been numerous cases of this species being poisoned in the British Isles in recent years, making it a likely possible cause of these new deaths.

A post-mortem is being carried out.

“White-tailed eagles, one of the largest birds of prey in Europe, are a magnificent sight to behold”

The RSPB said it is “deeply shocked and concerned to hear about the deaths... and we await the results of post-mortem tests with great interest”.

It added: “We urge anyone who has information relating to this incident to contact PSNI on the non-emergency number 101 as soon as possible or via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

“Our investigations team will assist the PSNI in any way it can with its enquiries, and we urge everyone to be vigilant and report suspicious activity or behaviour that could harm wildlife.

“White-tailed eagles, one of the largest birds of prey in Europe, are a magnificent sight to behold.

"Unfortunately, Northern Ireland has not had a nesting population of white-tailed eagles for many years and these deaths are a severe blow to the eagle population.”

The RSPB reported in February on the case of an estate in Dorset where birds, including a white-tailed eagle, had been poisoned (in that species’ case, with rat poison).

And an Irish Times report from January gave details of “a healthy juvenile male [which] had been brought to Ireland as a chick in 2021 from Norway,” that was poisoned with insecticide in the Cavan/Westmeath area.

The PSNI had said of this most recent case in Northern Ireland: "The white-tailed eagle is the UK's largest native bird of prey, with a vast wing span of up to 2.5 metres (8.2 feet), and are an incredibly beautiful species, which makes the discovery of these dead birds very distressing.

"In particular, we are aware one of the birds was born in Norway and brought as a chick to be released in the lower Shannon estuary in 2022.

"Following the launch of Op Subrision last week, our dedicated policing operation to combat rural and wildlife crime, we want the public to be reassured, we take all wildlife crime extremely seriously and are committed to investigating all instances of wildlife crime which are reported to police.

"If you have any information that can help with our investigation, please contact police on the non-emergency number 101 and quote 1906 16/05/23."

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