A county councillor is to apply for a hunting licence to shoot deer in the wild in Kerry, arguing that the National Parks and Wildlife Service is failing to tackle the problem of deer wandering out of Killarney National Park and on to busy roads.
Independent Fianna Fáil councillor Michael Healy-Rae said deer were crossing the road in front of cars in Kilgarvan and Killarney and causing accidents, "virtually on a daily basis".
Mr Healy-Rae, who is an experienced hunter of game birds and foxes, did not anticipate problems with shooting deer, he said.
His decision follows a motion he put down at a Kerry County Council meeting calling on the council to fence along the Coillte-owned land to prevent deer roaming on to roads. Mr Healy-Rae said he got a reply which made no sense at all.
The council said the land in question had been the subject of a court case and it was found to be unlawful to fence in deer. However, it was not unlawful to fence deer out; the council could fence off the road, but it would cost too much.
"Surely it is the same thing. If you are fencing them out of one place, aren't you fencing them in to another?" he asked.
There was now nothing for it but to apply to the wildlife service for the licence to carry out a cull himself from next October when the shooting season reopened, he said. He already has a licence for a rifle.
The IFA in Kerry has also called for a cull to be carried out by the wildlife service. As well as a major cause of accidents on country roads, farmers say deer are freely grazing valuable grasslands during the winter months.
The wildlife service in Kerry says there are an estimated 3,000 sika and red deer in the area. Many roam far beyond the national park boundary.
Culling is carried out in the park by wildlife rangers, but they would not be in a position to do so outside the park, a spokesman said.
Both the sika and the native red deer are protected in Kerry. While a permit may be obtained to shoot the smaller sika, the red species is still protected.
Pat Foley, deputy regional manager of the parks and wildlife service, said it was hoped the law would be changed so that red deer too could be shot in Kerry under licence.
The county council has in the meantime erected several new signs warning motorists to beware of crossing deer.
Most accidents involving the animals occur during the winter months when the native large red deer come down from the mountains to graze in the lowlands. The smaller sika, originally introduced from Japan, have increased with the growth of forestry in the county.