Walkers to face island controls

Continued from previous page oonagh Duggan, head of advocacy at Birdwatch Ireland, said she hopes the measures will work this time around.

In the past, Bull Island had its own sub-species of hare, and restrictions on dogs running loose were signposted and backed by a dog warden. There are now no hares on Bull Island.

“I’ve been sitting here looking out and in about five minutes, three people have arrived with their dogs unleashed and the minute they see the wetlands, the salt marsh area, the dogs are left off,” she said.

“So it’s very worrying because these wintering waterbirds come from Canada, Greenland and Iceland to spend the winter here with us, and they need to be free from disturbance in order to be fit to fly home so they can start the breeding season.”