2018 has proven to be a good year for breeding Corncrakes on Inishbofin, with between 14 -18 birds heard calling this summer.
This is a steady increase in numbers, despite an overall drop in numbers in Ireland as a whole over the previous 3 years.
Once a common bird all over rural Ireland, corncrakes are now mainly confined to coastal areas in Co Donegal, Mayo and Galway, including off shore islands. In 2017 numbers fell to 140 pairs from a peak of 230 in 2014.