BIRDWATCH IRELAND has recorded the arrival of the first two cuckoos of the year – one at Cuskinny Marsh near Cobh,
Co Cork, last Saturday and another near Ennis, Co Clare, the following day.
More than 5,000 breeding pairs are expected to follow in the next few weeks before departing our shores once again in August.
However, ornithologists fear the cuckoo’s distinctive song – which heralds the beginning of spring – could be lost forever as the numbers flying here to nest have declined significantly.
Although the cuckoo is registered on the green list – a register of Ireland’s most commonly sighted breeding birds – their numbers have been dropping since the 1950s.
Experts at BirdWatch Ireland fear their next survey will force them to classify cuckoos in the amber list and have warned that if the population continues to fall at current rates, cuckoos could become so rare that they will be moved to the red list. This would mean they would be officially classified as an endangered species for the first time.
Ornithologists say global warming is making the arduous 7,000km migration more and more perilous, with food and water sources drying up in Africa.
In Ireland, the birds face similar challenges, as changes in farming since the 1950s have reduced the insect population, meaning there is less food available. Niall Hatch, development officer of BirdWatch Ireland, said: “We are very concerned about the cuckoo, as their numbers have declined very dramatically over recent years.”
Because cuckoos lay eggs in other birds’ nests before evicting the host’s chicks, their future here is dependent on the wellbeing of other bird species.