Deer culled in Phoenix Park sold to Kildare meat supplier

The Office of Public Works (OPW) paid more than €6,000 for a sniper to kill 60 deer in the Phoenix Park last year.

The agency, which is responsible for managing the park, recouped some of the cost by selling the animals' carcasses to a meat supplier for €3,268.

A total of 16 other deer were euthanised during 2018 due to illness or serious injury, according to the OPW, the Irish Independent reports.

Car accidents accounted for the deaths of eight deer, while three of the animals were killed by other members of the herd last year.

Three deer died from unknown causes during the 12-month period.

The past three years have seen 10 culls carried out by a sniper in the Phoenix Park, resulting in the deaths of 263 deer.

Total revenue of €22,756 was generated from the sale of carcasses. Last year, the carcasses from culls carried out in February and November were sold to a Kildare-based meat supplier for an average of €54 per animal.

The services of a veterinarian were engaged for each cull.

The deer population in the Phoenix Park stood at 553 last September, compared to 540 recorded in October 2017 and 570 in October 2016.

A spokesperson for the OPW said: "An over-abundant deer population can result in increasing incidence of road traffic accidents and increase the potential role for deer in the epidemiology of specific diseases."