Birds encouraged to fly home to new Rathlin Island reserve

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Rathlin Island, off the north Antrim coast, is a favourite for visitors and tourists but now the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds hopes the purchase of land will encourage two types of special visitors to return.

Both the chough and the corncrake were once familiar to farmlands, but not so long ago both were locally extinct. Fifty-two hectares of the island were acquired by the RSPB as part of its drive to safeguard threatened birds such as lapwings, choughs and corncrakes.

Some of this land has been opened up to the public as part of the Roonivoolin Trail, a four-mile walk on the south of Rathlin Island. Over the past 40 years, changes to farming practices resulted in drastic declines of these birds. Lapwing numbers declined by more than 60%, corncrakes virtually disappeared and only one pair of choughs was left.


Chough were extinct in Northern Ireland for nearly 10 years and bred again on Rathlin Island in 2008 after a 19-year gap.
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With help from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), the land was bought to encourage the birds to nest in the area. RSPB NI director Aidan Lonergan described it as a "once-in-a-generation opportunity". "Grants and the generous support of RSPB members have enabled us to secure land on which some of our most endangered wildlife depends," he said.

"We hope that this will mark a new chapter in the recovery of key species and they will go on to a stronger, brighter future."

The chough last nested in Rathlin in 1990, but since 2002 it has made a reappearance and has been nesting on the north Antrim coast. It is hoped the chough, lapwing, corncrake and, as well as the Irish hare, will benefit from the Roonivoolin land purchase.


Corncrakes
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In attempt to make the land, and in turn sighting of the birds more accessible the RSPB created a walking trial through the reserve which was officially opened on Monday. The walking trail is in the southeast of the island, away from the popular Seabird centre in the west of Rathlin which features birds such as puffins, guillemots and razorbills.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/foyle_and_west/8140517.stm