How to Look for Signs of Bats
This is a guest post written by Andrew Harrington. Andrew has also written other posts on this blog. So, you might have figured out by now that I quite like bats, …
Ireland Archive
How to Look for Pine Marten
The pine marten (Martes martes) is making a recovery across Ireland, and is one our most beautiful but elusive mammals. It is notoriously difficult to see as it tends …
How to Look for Otters
In the first of a new series of posts about “How to Look for Mammals“, I take a look at one of our semi aquatic species, the Eurasian otter. …
How to Look for Mammals
I was fortunate to have the opportunity to present a workshop at the National Biodiversity Data Centre on Saturday September 13th on the art of “Tracking Ireland’s Mammals”. This was …
A Positive Cycle for Conservation in Ireland
Liam Lysaght, the director of the The National Biodiversity Data Centre (an organisation that collects and manages data relating to Ireland’s biodiversity) based in Waterford, is about to embark on a one …
What a difference a shrew makes
Last year, I wrote an article about how we used pine marten (Martes martes) scats or faeces to detect the DNA of small mammals that the pine marten had …
Are Irish badgers a distinct subspecies?
I recently got the opportunity to contribute to an article with Allan McDevitt about the species status of the Eurasian badger (Meles meles) in Ireland. In this article, we examine …
Timing and defining the Killarney shad
Killarney National Park situated in South West Ireland is famous for containing some unusual species that are not found elsewhere in the country including the Kerry spotted slug (Geomalacus maculosus), a …
From faeces to species: genetic identification of otters from spraints
Non-invasive genetic monitoring involves the use of DNA to survey a target species without directly trapping or observing it. The technique is particularly useful for rare, elusive or secretive …
Monitoring small mammals using predator scats
Ireland has few species of small mammals, and only some of these are native. The pygmy shrew (Sorex minutus) and the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) are considered to be …
Calling into question the accuracy of the ‘Standard Otter Survey’
We are required to survey otters across Europe as the species has been designated as being of conservation concern, under the EU Habitats and Species Directive. This means that …
Hedgerow cutting: an eco-worrier response
The Wildlife Act 1976, amended 2000, prohibits the cutting of hedgerows in Ireland during the period of March 1st to August 31st. However, under section 40 of the Wildlife …
The extinction of the Irish brown bear
A new study by Saoirse Leonard and co-authors from the Institute of Zoology, London and the University of Liverpool model the potential survival of brown bears in an Irish …
The Artful Badger
Last year, I published a paper with my co-authors about the genetic history of badgers in Ireland. Similar to my post last week, it appears that like the pine marten, …
Suspicious seal deaths continue in the South East of Ireland
Over the last few weeks a number of dead seals, some of which were decapitated, have washed up on the coast around Co. Waterford and Co. Wexford. See this …