Plans to reintroduce the golden eagle to Wales have prompted a call from farmers to record predator attacks on sheep.
The topic came up at the National Sheep Association regional AGM at the Royal Welsh Showground, Llanelwedd, on Wednesday (February 20).
The call came from farmer Lorraine Howells who was concerned that golden eagles might take young lambs off the hills and farmers should keep a record of anything, including crows and ravens, that bothered the normal sheep population to monitor the impact.
She said: “We were ignoring dog attacks, but now everybody is recording dog attacks we can see what a huge problem it is. If there is a register and it’s one attack by a raven you can put up with it, if it’s a hundred then you can say ravens are causing a problem.”
Former NSA Cymru chair John Lloyd suggested that even Snowdonia wasn’t big enough for more than two or three pairs of golden eagles. He said 50 breeding units were needed to sustain the population over decades and populations of protected predatory species had increased enormously in recent years.
Brexit, proactive businesses and a lively, interactive, discussion on animal health with Mid Wales vet Oliver Hodgkinson were among the other topics that came up at the meeting. NSA Next Generation Ambassador, Bleddyn Davies, outlined the benefits the scheme had brought him.
NSA Cymru chairman Tim Ward said the meeting had been lively despite the prevailing negativity over Brexit.
He said: “It’s been a very positive meeting and everybody is looking forward to the future, whatever it might bring and I think it all bodes well for the NSA that we get the support we do.”
Attempts to contact Wilder Britain, the organisation behind the plans to reintroduce the golden eagle to Wales have so far proved fruitless.