In Your Nature

Send us Fan Mail This weeks episode features Elaine O'Riordan, who is studying the ecology of the European Hedgehog in an Irish context for her PhD in the National University of Ireland Galway.  Elaine has run the Irish Hedgehog Survey for the last number of years, looking at how citizen scientists can feed into our understanding of the population of Hedgehogs in Ireland.  Ricky and Elaine ch...

Send us Fan Mail This weeks' episode features Dr. Alan McCarthy of BirdWatch Ireland discussing Hen Harriers, their ecology, pressures facing these birds, conservation efforts for this species, and his PhD research on this enigmatic species.     Alan's PhD research focused on both breeding and wintering aspects of Hen Harrier ecology in Ireland. Among other things, his research focused o...

Send us Fan Mail This weeks episode features Rob Gandola, Senior Science Officer at the The Herpetological Society of Ireland. Rob explains why ponds are essential for wildlife, how they can benefit us in terms of flood protection and recreationally, and provides tips for creating ponds of any size in our own gardens. Rob also explains the importance of ponds in the fight against climate change, w...

Send us Fan Mail In this weeks episode Niall and Ricky are bringing us the dawn chorus from BirdWatch Ireland's East Coast Nature Reserve (ECNR) in Newcastle, Co. Wicklow. Due to its diversity of habitats, the ECNR supports a wide range of species, from wrens, blackbirds, and robins to more locally confined species such as the sedge warbler, and so the soundscape in this episode is rich and t...

Send us Fan Mail In this weeks episode, Ricky and Niall bring us something very new - an Avian Eurovision Song Contest! The pair have selected 12 contestant birds. Nine of these are based on the Eurovision 2022 finalists national birds, with the other three national birds hand-picked by Ricky and Niall.  The birds representing each country are; European Robin - UK; Blackbird - Sweden; Italian Spar...

Send us Fan Mail In this week’s episode Ricky and Niall have a look at the application of working dogs to wildlife conservation projects in Africa. Ricky speaks to Rory Hennebry owner and operator of Munster Canine and Lead Trainer at K9 Wildlife Project a charity set-up to train dogs for wildlife conservation operations internationally.  Rory specialises in training working dogs for a myriad of t...

Send us Fan Mail In this the first episode of our new In Your Nature spring season, Ricky and Niall merge the diverse habitats of our bogs with the rich bird life found within them.  They discuss a broad range of bird and bogland species with the conversation going from childhood memories of the bog to cuckoos and then onto the threats facing our hen harrier populations. The chat covers a myriad o...

Send us Fan Mail In our final episode of 2022, we turn our attention to Marine Conservation with an interview with Sinéad Loughran - Fair Seas and BirdWatch Ireland Marine Policy Officer and Advocacy Officer. We look at the lack of protection for marine habitats and the need for more & better legislation, policies and protections. We look at the pressures on our sea life and the opportunities...

Send us Fan Mail In our penultimate episode of the season we visit Dublin Bay and discover just how important it is for winter waterbirds (ducks, waders, geese) and breeding terns during summer.  We speak to Helen Boland and Tara Adcock of The Dublin Bay Birds Project about 10 years of work, observing, tracking and monitoring the bird life of Dublin Bay. We look at the benefits for the birds choos...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we speak to Minister of State for Land Use and Biodiversity - Pippa Hackett.  For context, Pippa Hackett rapidly ascended the political strata in Ireland. An organic farmer, Pippa quickly became the Green Party Agricultural Spokesperson after joining the party, she then secured a council seat in Offaly (the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael heartland). Following that she w...

Send us Fan Mail We return to conservation with raptor expert John Lusby and discuss Ireland's smallest breeding bird of prey, the Merlin. These tiny but deadly falcons have an interesting ecology in Ireland straying somewhat from the norm seen in the rest of Europe. Found in remote, difficult terrain and at low density, the Merlin is notoriously tricky to monitor. However, John has been usin...

Send us Fan Mail We depart from our primary topic of birds in this episode to explore the world of Spiders. Who better to talk to on the topic but Collie Ennis, spider expert, Research Associate at Trinity College and Scientific Officer with the Herpetological Society of Ireland (www.thehsi.org/).  From a spiders life-cycle, to murderous mates and sub-aquatic species we learn heaps from a wonderfu...

Send us Fan Mail In the first episode of our winter season we take a deep dive into garden bird trends, who's on the up and who's not! In our first ever live episode we get in the the room with BirdWatch Ireland colleague Brian Burke - Scientific Officer and Garden Bird Survey Coordinator and talk shop about the birds we all see in our gardens on a regular basis. We look at the Garden Bi...

Send us Fan Mail In the final episode of the current season, we get an insiders take on Irish birding culture. Ricky chats to seasoned birder Niall Keogh on how folk go from occasional birdwatchers to die-hard twitchers. We talk, listing, patch birding, sea watching, twitching, the culture and the terminology that goes with the territory.  Bird of the Week is the flamboyant Hoopoe. In Your Nature...

Send us Fan Mail In Your Nature takes us to Cape Clear Island in south-west Cork. Cape Clear is a legendary spot among Irish and British birders and is home to BirdWatch Ireland's Cape Clear Birds Observatory, established over 60 years ago.  Niall chats to long-standing observatory warden -Steve Wing on the history, life, culture and goings on of obs and island life as well as the odd remarka...

Send us Fan Mail In Ireland we are lucky to host five breeding Tern species, namely; the Common, Arctic, Roseate, Little and Sandwich Tern. In this episode we look at these gracious birds in detail and chat about their identifying features, ecology and breeding sites.  We chat to Dr Stephen Newton - Senior Seabird Conservation Officer with BirdWatch Ireland on Tern conservation in Ireland over thr...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we take a close look at the Barn Owl and speak to John Lusby - Raptor Conservation Officer with BirdWatch Ireland on conservation efforts to help the species in Ireland.  Our interview with John reflects on well over a decade of Barn Owl conservation projects in Ireland. We discover how fortunes have changed for the species, aided by a surprising source. We look at...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we look closely at Bird Flu, with the current outbreak having ripped through seabird colonies across the UK and with the first confirmed cases in ROI. Ricky and Niall look at the origins, effects and probable outcomes of avian influenza in our bird communities.  Bird of the Week is back with Great Skua, aka "Bonxie" under the spotlight.  In Your Nature is...

Send us Fan Mail In Your Nature is back with its summer season and we're kicking off with an episode all about "riverbirds".  We focus on five river specialists, the Kingfisher, Dipper, Grey Wagtail, Sand Martin and the Common Sandpiper. Niall and Ricky discuss the identifying features, ecology and interesting adaptations these species have developed for life on the river.  In Your...

Send us Fan Mail This episode is crammed with bird audio and beautiful soundscapes recorded by Sean Ronayne, the Creator of Irish Wildlife Sounds. Sean talks us through the process, places and protagonists involved in his recordings of birds and wild places. We are brought on a journey from the wetlands of Spain to a shed roof in Cork all in pursuit of the perfect sound clip. We get to savor the r...

Send us Fan Mail Bird eggs are the topic for this In Your Nature episode. We follow the journey of the egg, all the way from formation through to hatching. These fascinating little capsules carry all bird life into the world and form such an interesting part in the story of birds.  Ode to their beautifully diverse eggs we choose Guillemots as bird of the week!  In Your Nature is produced in partne...

Send us Fan Mail We are off to Cork with this episode to check in Harpers Island a fantastic wetland reserve close to Cork City. The reserve is managed for birds and wildlife by volunteers from a collaborative of local groups and is a real mecca for the wild flora and fauna in the region.  Ricky chats to Jim Wilson an established ornithologist, author, wildlife expert and founding member of the Ha...

Send us Fan Mail Since humans occupied and began to alter our landscape there have been winners and loosers amongst our bird species. Humans impact on the avifauna of Ireland has been mostly negative with persecution, over hunting and habitat destruction/loss being big drivers in the extinction process.  Ricky and Niall look at some species that are long extinct, some that have slipped away in the...

Send us Fan Mail There have been three species reintroductions of birds of prey in Ireland since the early 2000s. Ricky and Niall discuss the advantages and challenges of this method of bird conservation. Ricky chats to Dr Allan Mee on the specifics of the Golden Eagle Trusts work to establish a viable breeding White-tailed Eagle population in Ireland after an absence of hundreds of years.  Bird o...

Send us Fan Mail The first episode of the new season of In Your Nature Podcast is finally here. This time Ricky and Niall chat about a mutually favoured topic - the crow family.  The conversation discusses Ireland's seven native species of corvid from the largest, the Raven to the most secretive, the Jay. The chat is full of facts, folklore and praise for these highly intelligent birds. The h...