Counting hares under the spotlightMichael Viney: Camera traps are now used as a regular part of hare monitoringSat Mar 21 2020 - 06:00
Sea change for the worse as alien seaweed unmakes the bedMarine life with very specific habitat needs threatened in the face of sweeping changeSat Mar 14 2020 - 06:00
The trouble with terrapins and two wild reptiles living in IrelandThree terrapins as pets seems a bit ambitious considering their needsSat Mar 07 2020 - 06:00
Bogged down: Bleak outlook for the west’s blanket peatlandsThe list of causes of damage is long, making it hard to know where to startSat Feb 29 2020 - 06:00
How have our grey seals adapted to eat venomous weever fish?Few, if any, of Ireland’s mammals have evolved the ability to eat venomous creaturesSat Feb 22 2020 - 06:00
Golden kelp: how did the alien seaweed end up in Irish waters?Golden kelp is notably bare of other sea life, so there are concerns over its possible impactSat Feb 15 2020 - 06:00
New year plant hunt gives young, keen, diligent botanists adrenaline spikeLong-term objective is to see how wildflowers are responding to changes in weather patterns and climateSat Feb 08 2020 - 06:00
Mixed messages from politicians on biodiversityTime to restore meadows once full of insects and nectar in summer and spires of seeds in winterSat Feb 01 2020 - 06:00
Storm Brendan rattles the nature-depleted NorthA new report shows no let-up in the loss of wildlife in Northern IrelandSat Jan 25 2020 - 06:00
How do we choose which endangered species to save?Corncrakes get major EU funding despite being of ‘least concern’ on Red List criteriaSat Jan 18 2020 - 06:00
On a frosty morning 40 years ago, I saw a group of dolphins playing tagAs top marine predators, dolphins accumulate the most man-made toxic pollutantsSat Jan 11 2020 - 06:00
Michael Viney: Climate change an existential threat to civilisation, scientists sayGlobal warming presents potentially damaging cascades of impacts, new study findsSat Jan 04 2020 - 06:00
Michael Viney’s Christmas quiz: Test your nature knowledgeFifty brain teasers on all things natural from sealife to flora and what tofu is made ofSat Dec 21 2019 - 06:00
All change on our once bustling highways and bywaysLocal communities challenged to make the best of what is a dense weave of waysidesSat Dec 14 2019 - 06:00
Michael Viney: These hills are made for walkingStudy says hill farmers should supplement income by developing recreational activitiesSat Dec 07 2019 - 06:00
Ireland’s choughs: a prime and precious Wild Atlantic Way attractionPyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax (so good they named it twice) is one of the rarer birds of western EuropeSat Nov 30 2019 - 06:00
Monitoring the otter, Ireland’s elusive, enigmatic river-dwellerMammologists at University College Cork are leading an extensive study of the urban otterSat Nov 23 2019 - 06:00
Distinctive history of nature literature compiled in insightful anthologyWoven Shades of Green is a ‘a generous treasury of Irish nature poetry and prose’Sat Nov 16 2019 - 06:00
The machair at Dooaghtry is teeming with rare and precious organismsA soft day in late spring finds them copulating everywhere in the dunesSat Nov 09 2019 - 06:00
Dim the lights: Our world without darkness is an unnatural disasterMichael Viney: The nocturnal dazzle of the western world is upsetting the natural orderSat Nov 02 2019 - 06:00
Michael Viney: Faithful robin’s subdued song an autumnal delightThe feeding of so many different species of birds has become ecologically importantSat Oct 26 2019 - 06:00
How the dearg-a-daol became Ireland’s most feared beetleThe beetle’s reputation comes from both folklore and its threatening postureSat Oct 19 2019 - 06:00
Autumn gives Connacht a thrilling beauty making regular storms endurableBefore double glazing we watched gusts bowing the windows - now we get out candles and Scrabble and enjoy what’s left of the wineSat Oct 12 2019 - 06:00
Spot the difference: how Clare Island has changed in 100 yearsClare Island’s increasingly rainy climate offers special rewards to scientific fieldworkSat Oct 05 2019 - 06:00
‘They ruin picnics’: Our feelings about wasps will need reformWe may not like then as much as bees, but without wasps, we could be ‘overrun with spiders’Sat Sept 28 2019 - 06:00
Ireland’s habitat survey lays the groundwork for better conservationDigging below the surface of our 58 habitats, it’s clear some are thriving better than othersSat Sept 21 2019 - 06:00
When mushroom picking, a little knowledge is a dangerous thingThere are old mushroom hunters and bold mushroom hunters but no old, bold onesSat Sept 14 2019 - 06:00
How ballooning spiders fly through the skyCertain species can use gossamer threads and planet’s electrical field to take flightSat Sept 07 2019 - 06:00
Decline in numbers of wintering waterbirds continues apaceLatest survey of almost 700 key wetlands offers fascinating insights into the changing world of migrant wildfowl and shorebirdsSat Aug 31 2019 - 06:00
Beehives in Dublin city will need expert managementA swarm of bees is remarkably docile – it’s focused on the queen and not rushing to sting anyoneSat Aug 24 2019 - 06:00
Fuschia bushes a promising habitat for the elephant hawkmoth caterpillarMoths and butterflies often highly selective in the plants that feed their caterpillarSat Aug 17 2019 - 06:00
The raccoons of Macroom: Look out for these escapees of the pet tradeIn Ireland, raccoons join a long list of introduced and invasive mammalsSat Aug 10 2019 - 06:00
Could mass planting of trees provide a climate change solution?Forestation a major option for storing carbon but greater coverage could have adverse impactsSat Aug 03 2019 - 06:00
The unsung fate of the ocean’s Atlantic herringFishery proving uniquely destructive to the fish’s spawning grounds in the shelving Atlantic bays of IrelandSat Jul 27 2019 - 06:00
As the ice melts, what will become of our planet?Conference in Dublin to explore how Quaternary research helps model Earth’s futureSat Jul 20 2019 - 06:00
Irish sightings of the common toad pose ecological risksThe common toad – Bufo bufo – may spell competition for Ireland’s native natterjackSat Jul 13 2019 - 06:00
‘Rewilding’ sounds so much better than merely ‘letting things go’The sad rationing of my energies means the garden has been largely left to its own devicesSat Jul 06 2019 - 06:00
Michael Viney: New insect casualties arise from cattle doses untested in the fieldLivestock parasites are showing increasing resistance to drugs, notably in Ireland’s sheepSat Jun 29 2019 - 06:00
What the bramble lacks in hectarage, it makes up for in varietyIntriguing ecological answer emerges for the origin and manuring of new and dense thicketsSat Jun 22 2019 - 06:00
Home to lizards and lichens: the distinctive ecosystem of dry stone wallsAs the climate changes the 400,000km of stone walls in the Irish countryside need careSat Jun 15 2019 - 06:00
Michael Viney: Live by the swardResearchers have turned to the promise of multi-species grasslandSat Jun 08 2019 - 06:00
How can Irish people help stave off the end of civilisation?Nuanced rewilding approaches can help but a less piecemeal approach will be requiredSat Jun 01 2019 - 06:00
Plankton, salt sprays and other potential solutions to climate changeOne team of scientists say spraying salt water into the atmosphere could protect Arctic iceSat May 25 2019 - 06:00
Where are all the insects gone? My unease deepens year by yearThe UN report on nature’s destruction has left humans dumbstruck or indifferentSat May 18 2019 - 06:00
Mulranny the proud last stronghold of the Old Irish GoatRecognition of their venerable bloodlines has swept them into attention as a rare and authentic Irish breedSat May 11 2019 - 06:00
Jellyfish make swimmers’ lives a misery but how important are they to the ocean?The sea around Ireland has a host of gelatinous species - many come in bizarre geometrical shapes and assembliesSat May 04 2019 - 06:00
River Barrow prepares for next hatching season of lampreysRiver and sea lampreys differ greatly in size and in the size and pattern of their teethSat Apr 27 2019 - 06:00
The sadness of knowing that some day spring will come too soonClimate change brings with it timing mismatches that threaten some species’ survivalSat Apr 20 2019 - 06:00
The song of birds has engaged the human psyche for centuries‘You could argue that blackbird sings the words, whereas mistle thrush speaks them’Sat Apr 13 2019 - 06:00
Stark decline of basking shark numbers a cautionary taleGiant creature now an endangered species in northeast Atlantic after a cull that lasted half a centurySat Apr 06 2019 - 06:00
