An attempt to poison a family of peregrines (two adults and four youngsters) at Dalkey Quarry, part of the Killiney Hill Park in Co. Dublin, has been foiled thanks to three observant members of the public.
On the evening of 11th June, three walkers noticed two pigeons in distress at the quarry, close to the well-known peregrine’s nest ledge. On closer inspection, the pigeons were found to be tethered with fishing line and had had their wings clipped to prevent them from flying. While rescuing the pigeons, a wet substance was noticed on the back of their necks. It is suspected that this was poison, placed there in a deliberate attempt to kill the peregrines. The substance is being tested at a specialist lab.
If it was poison, those members of the public are lucky not to have been affected.
Full details of the story can be found on the BirdWatch Ireland website here.
It wouldn’t be the first time this barbaric method has been used to kill raptors. In 2011, two buzzards and a sparrowhawk were killed in Ireland after being attracted to live tethered pigeons that had been smeared with the banned poison Carbofuran (see here).
Raptor Persecution UK 
Being that Peregrines were the target, it could be assumed that the perpetrator of this act were my fellow pigeon keepers. They are certainly not pigeon lovers or they would not put their pigeons through this ordeal. They are most certainly greedy morons who believe a profit is more important than the welfare of their birds.
I have Peregrine’s nesting less than a mile from my loft but have not lost a pigeon to a peregrine for at least 8 years! Together with gamekeepers who do crimes against our birds of prey, pigeon keepers should be jailed if and when convicted.
This is not the first time, then, I am so distressed to read of what they did to the pigeons in the hope of killing the whole family of peregrines. Do hope these people are caught and severely punished to deter others from doing such cruelty. Such inhumanity for the greed of money is horrific.