They can be soul destroying but also very addictive. Merlin are renowned as one of the more difficult of our birds of prey to survey and locate. This is most definitely the case when you find yourself spending long days in the bog, in a wetsuit, and using various combinations of ropes, ladders, canoes, and nest inspection devices just to get to their nest sites....let alone the efforts necessary to find the nests in the first place!
Surveying for Merlin in Connemara... strange stares from on-lookers guaranteed. (Dario-Fernandez-Bellon)
Connemara is thought to be one of the strongholds for Merlin in Ireland, and one of their favourite nesting sites is small, densely vegetated islands on the many lakes scattered across the vast areas of bog. The Raptor Conservation Project and NPWS have focused Merlin research and monitoring in this area for the past three breeding seasons and this year substantial efforts have been undertaken to visit all traditional island nest sites as well as a large sample of potentially suitable islands. See the video clip below which shows typical Merlin survey work in Connemara, checking for plucking perches, taking a dip in the lake and eventually uncovering an active nest.
Typical Merlin survey work in Connemara. Filmed under licence from NPWS (John Lusby & Dario Fernandez-Bellon).
Dermot Breen (NPWS) in particular has put in huge effort in checking suitable islands which has resulted in pinning down four pairs so far this season. One of these pairs has already fledged four chicks, one is still on eggs and at the other two sites we have ringed broods of three and four young, so quite positive news from the pairs that we have been monitoring so far.
Merlin nest with three young on an island in the Connemara Bog Complex SPA. Photographed under licence from NPWS (John Lusby).
Merlin nest with clutch of five eggs in Connemara. Photographed under licence from NPWS (John Lusby).
There is very little known about Merlin in Ireland, so this work, even though it is quite time consuming and labour intensive is providing essential insights on their status and ecology. We will be checking other traditional and suitable sites over the next two weeks and will post further updates on progress.
