Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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263. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the extent to which corncrake numbers still exist at specific sites nationally; the preservation actions in place or proposed in this regard; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38003/19]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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Although the global population is considered stable, in Ireland the Corncrake is a species of high conservation concern in Ireland  due to long-term declines. The population of Corncrakes in Ireland has been monitored annually since 1993 (by recording how many male birds are calling at night-time) and is critically low, with 151 calling males recorded in 2018. Donegal remains the national stronghold, with 90 confirmed calling males. West Connacht, which comprises the western seaboards of counties Mayo and Galway, held 59 males. Two calling males were recorded in  Co. Sligo.

Restoration of the Corncrake population is an important component of my Department’s overall work on species protection. Measures to protect the Corncrake include the designation of 9 Special Areas of Protection (SPAs) for the protection of breeding corncrake populations in Ireland. The offshore islands, particularly off Donegal, are of critical importance.  Conservation measures in 2018 included habitat management and the administration of grant schemes to promote beneficial land management for the species.

The National Parks & Wildlife Service Farm Plan Scheme for Corncrakes offers incentives to landowners to create and manage habitat for Corncrakes. Landowners nominate plots they would like to work on and receive payment for habitat creation and putting management measures in place for Corncrake. In 2018, there were 10 farmers in the NPWS Farm Plan Scheme delivering 63.52ha of habitat for Corncrake.

The NPWS also operates the Corncrake Grant Scheme, where landowners who have Corncrake calling on or near their land receive a grant for adopting Corncrake friendly mowing practices. In 2018, 125 participants entered the Corncrake Grant Scheme (CGS), covering an area 352.78ha nationally.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine operates a Green Low-Carbon Agri-Environmental (GLAS) Corncrake Measure, which aims to create and maintain cover and nesting shelter for Corncrakes during breeding season (April to September).  Farmers undertaking the measure are required to commit to provision of early cover dominated by broad-leaved plant species e.g. Iris or nettle, and grazing, mowing, topping and/or other field operations requiring the use of machinery are not permitted from 10 March to 10 August annually.

In 2018, there were 64 GLAS participants with 209ha of land planned for delivering Corncrake habitat.

Following decades of decline, the breeding population of corncrakes has stabilised, albeit at low numbers. My Department will continue to work with farmers and landowners towards the conservation of this species in Ireland and I look forward to seeing improved population numbers as a result of these measures.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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264. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the number of red grouse still in existence here; the extent to which preservation or restoration provisions are made or can be made in this respect; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38004/19]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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The Red Grouse is a species found only in Ireland and Scotland that lives entirely on heather moorland and bogs. In recent decades, it has suffered from the continued decline of its habitats and the condition and extent of our bogs. Red Grouse require large areas of natural and semi-natural habitat; the destruction and fragmentation of these habitats have been identified as major threats to Red Grouse populations. 

The last comprehensive survey was carried out in 2006/2008, which found just under 2,000 breeding pairs of Red Grouse in Ireland. Since 1980, the population is considered to have declined by up to 40%. Additionally, there has been a decline of over 50% in their breeding range from 1972 to 2018. 

In 2012, the NPWS carried out survey of Red Grouse in the Owenduff/Nephin Complex Special Protection Area (SPA) in County Mayo, an SPA which had previous declines in grouse populations due to changes in habitat quality and extent, largely caused by overgrazing.  This survey showed the population had almost doubled since an earlier survey in 2002.  This increase in grouse numbers is attributed to beneficial management of the land  in the intervening period. Off-wintering of livestock from 2006 has allowed an improvement in the habitat condition within the Owenduff/Nephin SPA.

A Red Grouse Species Action Plan () was completed in 2013 by the National Red Grouse Steering Committee, supported by my Department.  This national plan sets out the background to the species decline, the challenges facing conservation efforts, the pressures the population is under and a framework for action to deliver conservation measures for Red Grouse in Ireland. 

Since the plan was published, there have been a range of positive conservation measures undertaken to maintain and improve the existing habitat for Red Grouse and to support breeding pairs, through habitat management and other measures. These measures have been particularly successful where farmers, hunters and ecologists have cooperated together.

The national Species Action Plan lists a number of locally-led management projects such as the Ballydangan Bog Red Grouse Project, Co. Roscommon, which started in 2009 and which supports active management of grouse habitat which has also benefitted other threatened species including breeding Curlew.