Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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420. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of deer in Killarney National Park; the size of the population increase between 2006 and 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5045/22]

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
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The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) of my Department carries out regular surveys, censuses and reports on the distribution, population density and population structure of Red and Sika deer in our sites as appropriate. These operational reports are of sensitive content and my Department does not generally give out specific information with regard to herd populations and density on our lands as such information could be an incentive for wildlife crime (such as deer poaching).

Deer populations by their nature are mobile and have a home range that is not constrained by landownership boundaries. Where appropriate, and depending on the annual counts – or where it is evident that damage is being caused by deer to habitats, especially woodland, culls may need to be carried out to ensure that deer populations do not reach levels that would have negative ecological consequences.

While my Department licenses the hunting of deer, it does not own the deer population and is not responsible for their control on private lands or the wider countryside. The control of deer on private property is a matter for the relevant landowner. Landowners may apply to my Department for a permission under section 42 of the Wildlife Acts to cull deer where this is necessary outside the annual open seasons. These permissions offer a facility whereby a person can obtain a permit, on a case by case basis, to prevent serious damage caused by individual deer on specific lands. Permissions are only issued where there is evidence of such damage.

The NPWS actively manages deer herd on lands in its ownership. The culling of the deer herd is a regular and on-going management operation within our National Parks to ensure sustainable herd management. The table below illustrates actions in this regard over the period 2016-2021 with regard to Killarney National Park