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Meet Ireland's rarest native mammal
Watch a video showing the pine marten - Ireland's rarest native mammal. After watching, please support our action alert which calls on the NPWS to reject any further licence applications for killing this creature.
NPWS issue licence to kill Ireland's rarest mammal
30 April 2014
The Irish Council Against Blood Sports has learned that the National Parks and Wildlife Service has issued a licence for the killing of a rare and protected pine marten. The licence was granted earlier this year under Section 42 of the Wildlife Act to "control protected wild animals causing serious damage".
The damage which merited a death sentence? "Urinating/defecating or other damage to stock," the NPWS Licensing Unit stated in response to an enquiry from ICABS.
We find it shocking that a licence was granted to allow the killing of a pine marten, particularly as:
Responding to a Dail Question from ICABS President, Maureen O'Sullivan TD, the Minister for Arts and Heritage Jimmy Deenihan confirmed the killing.
"Only one licence has been granted in recent years to allow the killing of one pine marten," he said. "In this particular instance, the licensee demonstrated that there was an on-going persistent problem that had not been solved by live capture and removal. There was also a public health concern as the affected premises housed a food wholesaler."
Exact numbers of pine martens are unknown but estimates suggest that the total Irish population is just 2,700 or less.
| Ireland's rarest mammal: The NPWS granted a licence for the killing of a pine marten like this |
ACTION ALERTS
Join us in urging the NPWS to reject any future applications for licences to kill the rare pine marten species.
Wildlife Licensing Unit
National Parks & Wildlife Service
Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht
Ely Place, Dublin 2
Tel: 01 888 3289
Email: wildlifelicence@ahg.gov.ie
CC: jimmy.deenihan@oireachtas.ie
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