As the Government's seeks to hire conservationists in a bid to prevent the extinction of the curlew, a local experts says its absence has brought a "silence" to the countryside.
Joe Shannon, secretary of the Monaghan branch of Birdwatch Ireland told Shannonside Northernsound that it will be "difficult" to reverse the decline.
97% of Ireland's breeding curlew are now gone with experts anticipating it extinction within 10 years.
Mr Shannon, meanwhile, says it's an "iconic species" and in imminent danger of extinction.
"It's an iconic species that a lot of landowners and walkers had been well used to hearing," he continued.
"But, alas, there is a lot of silence in the countryside.
"We are now at the eleventh hour.
"Over the last number of years the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has started the public conservation programme in an effort to stop the bird's decline, but it is proving very difficult to address."
