Help name Glengarriff’s eagle chick before she takes flight

MEMBERS of the public are invited to name the Glengarriff Nature Reserve white-tailed eagle chick.

The Southern Star had taken to calling the 16-week-old chick ‘Dot’ after a tag with a dot on it was placed on her wing shortly before she fledged on June 30th.

Clare Heardman, the conservation ranger, always referred to her as ‘chick’, especially in the early days before the white-tailed eagle’s sex was formally determined.

Now the public can have their say by making suggestions in the comments section on the Glengarriff Nature Reserve Facebook page.

People feel an affinity with this bird. Thousands have followed her progress even before she hatched in the eyrie overlooking Glengarriff harbour thanks to a webcam provided by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS).

Although ‘Dot’ is still around, and she is still accepting fresh kills from her mother, Mama P, (with Daddy ‘W’ having gone AWOL weeks ago!), she is likely to leave the area soon to establish her own territory.

Before that happens, Clare said they’d like one of her followers to name her because the NPWS will continue to track her whereabouts via the satellite chip with which she has been fitted.

Some people suggest that she should be given a strong feminist name, like Countess Markievicz.

Others say she should be named in honour of John Hume who passed away this week.

What are your thoughts?

The ‘winning’ name will be announced in The Southern Star in a couple of weeks’ time.