This blog makes an amateurish attempt to inform, educate and entertain those with an interest in Irelands biodiversity, enviroment and natural history. Please comment with your own stories or views! We live on a beautiful Island and are surrounded by natural wonders...lets keep it that way.
More on Bats very soon, as I've been having a great few nights of Batwatching. But for now, a brief post about one of our rarest birds, the Little Tern. I think we've all got a soft spot for Terns - they are truly mighty little birds, and although the Little Tern's migratory journey may not rival that of the Common Tern, flying between the West Coast of Africa and the Irish coast every year is still a very impressive haul. Terns are a reminder that good weather is on the horizon and seeing them lifts my spirits in the same way as when I see a Swallow or a Swift return. We have 5 species in Ireland; the Sanwich, Roseate, Common, Arctic and Little Tern, and if you would like to see one, head down to Howth or Dun Laoghaire Piers and take a stroll. There are only 200 pairs of nesting Little Terns in Ireland, so thankfully their largest colony in Kilcoole, Co. Wicklow, has a very dedicated conservation project set up to care for them. The "Kilcoole Little Tern Conservation Group" can be found here:
Unforunately our increased use of beaches can have an effect on the nesting habits of these little travellers. The same goes for many other coastal birds such as the Ringed Plover. So always keep your eye out when your are on a beach this summer - you might have a guest nearby.
A quick post tonight: here is a lecture on Irish Basking Sharks that the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group posted today. It features Simon Berrow, a well known field biologist with Whales, Dolphins and Basking Sharks, giving an excellent insight into these "big fish of the sun". The talk was given at a TEDx event:
When I was a kid I saw a dead Leatherback Turtle mounted for display in Ardara, Co. Donegal. I was told in the 1980s that this was a totally freakish event. How could one of the largest Turtles in the world get to the Northwest Coast of Ireland? Well, thanks to brilliant research over the past 15-20 years, it seems these ocean wanderers migrate to our waters from the tropics every year. Sightings are reported pretty often these days, and the Cork coast seems to be a favourite spot. So it was nice to see Michael Viney write about Leatherbacks this week in his "Another Life" column. and you can read the article here:
These Turtles are just jellyfish crazy. If you had one over for dinner, and you served it the finest food in the land, it would push the plate away and state, "Sir, I kindly refuse your attempt at haute cuisine; please bring me the finest Jellyfish known to man". To find out more about our Jellyfish, and the Leatherbacks that dine on them in Irish waters, here is a link to The Irish Leatherback Sea Turtle Project which has some great info on turtle migration.
I should also say that this photo isn't mine - its from this Scienceblogs article on "Leatheries" so credit where its due - I just wanted to give an idea of the size, and the chances of getting a photo of a Leatherback on an Irish beach are slim to none.
A couple of years ago as I was walking my Dog in broad daylight near Herbert Park in Donnybrook, I came across a tiny little Pipistrelle Bat lying in the middle of the road. It was pretty obvious that one of the Bats wings was badly broken, so I picked it up, brought it home, and then to the Vet at Charlemont who then passed it on to the Bat sanctuary in Bray. This brief encounter with one of our tiny flying mammals made me go a little Batty for Bats. I had only ever seen bats flitting about at dusk, like ephemeral shadows; there one moment, gone the next. But up close to this tiny distressed Pipistrelle I saw a beautiful and perfectly formed furry flying creature. And when I found out that this tiny animal I held in my hand could eat up to 3000 insects a night (3000!!!) I was astonished. Consider this; the Pipistrelle weighs in at the equivalent of a 1 Euro coin. Ever since then, I always try to look up at dusk, and try to catch of glimpse of these other worldly wonders.
And thats exactly what I was doing last Saturday at a friends BBQ when I looked up to see what Im certain was a Leislers Bat, flying high and powerfully between the treetops. Leislers Bats are our biggest species. This gave me an idea, and last night I took a stroll at dusk on the Dodder, in a loop from Alexandra College to the wear at Dartry. I was hoping I would see a Daubentons Bat, and about 300 metres from the Dropping Well pub I eventually did. It was flying over the water, at first high and then low over the river; it actually reminded me of a little toy jet fighter. I could even make out a strange sound the bat was making, and I thought I must have been hearing things. Yet after consulting the Collins Complete Irish Wildlife it seems I wasn't wrong!!!
"Chirps can be heard by those with good hearing" (Sterny, 2004, p. 24). I found this clip from BBC Springwatch 2009 which has some great footage of Daubenton's Bat feeding - by the looks of things only Swifts and Swallows can compete in the aerial acrobatic stakes!
After about 10 minutes I walked on, and not 100 metres further up the river I was able to stop and watch a Pipistrelle bank and roll through the air catching delicious insects. This all got me thinking, so I popped over to http://www.batconservationireland.org/ and found out there are lots of ways we can all help to find, count, survey and just enjoy being in the company of Bats. Actually, volunteering to help on their waterways summer 2010 Bat survey sounds like a lovely way to while away those long Irish summer nights. And finally, here's a great info page I found online on Daubenton's Bat (all credit to the University of Bristol to which I have no affiliaton).
Hello naturekids! Without any fanfare(I can't afford any!)I begin this blog with a short post about the 2nd largest shark in the world, our very own Basking Shark.
I've always been fascinated by these gentle giants of the deep, ever since I first visited the Natural History Museum as a small child and there above me was the biggest fish I had ever seen. The fascination extends not simply from the sheer size of these animals, but from the beautiful calmness which seems to exude from the supposed "monsters" of the deep. So keep your eyes peeled if you are by the coast this summer and may grab a glimpse of a GIANT!
If you are a surfer, a swimmer, a walker, or a watcher, try to spot a yellow tag on the dorsal fin of the animal. If you can see tag, you can report it to www.baskingshark.ie who would be more than happy if the public could help identify Sharks tagged for research purposes. The more info the scientific types get, the more knowledge about how and where the Basking Sharks live can be gained. Here's a video (filmed in Cornwall) of these giants of the deep:
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