The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) is dedicated to the preservation of hen harriers by reducing forest cover within Special Protected Areas (SPAs). This commitment is outlined in the ‘Hen Harrier Threat Response Plan’, a collaborative effort between the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (DHLGH), DAFM, and the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC). The plan emphasizes DAFM’s acknowledgment of open moorland as vital hen harrier habitat and their pledge to diminish forest cover to enhance habitat area and connectivity within SPAs.
DAFM-Forestry has declared a halt on further afforestation within these SPAs until the species’ conservation status is significantly improved. While young forest plantations attract hen harriers for breeding, the closure of forest canopies compromises their breeding success. A forest’s habitat value for hen harriers diminishes until clear-felling occurs, making lightly grazed heath or bog with scrub the most suitable nesting habitat. Coillte, a long-term forest management entity, is committed to expanding the biodiversity-focused portion of its estate and implementing habitat restoration measures for hen harriers.
Coillte’s commitments include increasing the area managed primarily for nature from 20% to 30% by 2025, redesigning 30,000ha of peatland forest for climate and ecological benefits by 2050, and aiming for 50% of its estate to be managed primarily for nature in the long term. The ‘Hen Harrier Threat Response Plan’ highlights the potential for habitat restoration within these commitments. However, the forestry actions needed to reverse the decline of hen harriers and achieve conservation goals may pose challenges and conflicts with forestry practices aimed at minimizing environmental impacts and carbon storage.
Coillte has initiated feasibility studies and research to assess the implications of these commitments on its forestry management in SPAs. Collaboration with NPWS in the Slieve Bloom Mountains SPA aims to enhance biodiversity and hen harrier habitat management. Forest redesign and restoration efforts in strategic areas of the estate will serve as a pilot approach for similar initiatives in other SPAs. The plan anticipates a continued decline in forest areas used by hen harriers during the breeding season, necessitating a comprehensive long-term forest management strategy across all SPAs.
This strategy aims to mitigate the impact of closed canopy forests, enhance foraging resources, promote habitat connectivity, and reduce breeding productivity risks. Efforts will also focus on identifying high-probability nesting areas and minimizing forestry-related disturbances in sensitive breeding zones of SPAs through appropriate protocols.
