The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has decided that the temporary closure of the hunting season for wild birds, which was extended for an extra seven days last week, will be extended again for a further week.
The temporary closure is to protect wild ducks, geese and waders and other wild game birds during the cold weather. The National Parks and Wildlife Service urges all hunters to respect this measure which clearly has a conservation benefit for the long-term populations of these wild game species. This temporary closure of the hunting season will allow for the hunting of pen-reared birds, but this will require a licence.
The situation will be reviewed by Thursday 30th December.