In Your Nature

Send us Fan Mail In this episode Ricky and Niall chat about traditional links between birds and Christmas. We discuss the birds mentioned in the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas”, the long association between Robins and the festive season and how best to take care of our feathered friends in our gardens over the cold winter months. We hope you enjoy and Happy Christmas!  For more about BirdWatch...

Send us Fan Mail In the final episode of In Your Nature Season #2 Niall and Ricky share with us their knowledge of the Curlew. The conversation covers their ecology, migratory movements and lots more, almost in a bid to delay the inevitable conversation about the decline of the Eurasian Curlew and many of its closely related cousins.  A frank interview with BirdWatch Irelands Anita Donaghy (Assist...

Send us Fan Mail The Irish coastline and offshore Islands are home to some of the biggest seabird colonies in Europe. It's at these colonies you will find the hardiest and some of the most handsome breeding birds in Ireland.  A message from the Rockabill Wardens will give listeners a brief insight into life living amongst a seabird colony off the Dublin coast. Niall and Ricky introduce us to...

Send us Fan Mail There is no such thing as a seagull! Ricky and Niall provide evidence for this statement and look at Irelands seven breeding gull species and point out some of the more likeable characteristics of this frequently misunderstood family of birds. We chat about intelligence, adaptability and the  global distribution of gulls and how they are excellent parents and why they receive an a...

Send us Fan Mail In Your Nature celebrates the curiosity of children in this special episode! Niall and Ricky answer questions submitted and put to them by children during years of presenting talks and walks about birds to young people.   The topics are broad and hit on all sorts, from "How do owls turn their necks all the way around" to "are Moorhens the bossiest birds" . Ther...

Send us Fan Mail In Your Nature Season 2 continues with an episode looking at the unique landscape and nature of The Shannon Callows. We interview BirdWatch Ireland breeding wader expert and born & bred callows woman Kathryn Finney, who gives us a great local insight.  We chat about, farming, floods and fences, and their impact on the birds within this internationally important wetland landsca...

Send us Fan Mail In Your Nature returns with its first episode (of 6) planned for this summer season. This week we are chatting about Swifts, a bird species that has captivated the imagination of many and it's clear that hosts Ricky Whelan and Niall Hatch are also smitten with this charismatic urbanite.  The chat explores the Swifts unique ecology, the threats they face and some solutions to...

Send us Fan Mail This is the final episode in our spring series, we will return with new In Your Nature Episodes in June. In this episode we chat about the wonder of Wildflowers. We welcome our second guest to In Your Nature in Dr Fiona MacGowan, a Botanist and professional Ecologist. We discuss wildflowers you are likely to spot in early spring, their importance for pollinating insects and we als...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we chat about bogs. We welcome our first guest in Dr Catherine Farrell,  an experienced peatland ecologist and researcher at Trinity College Dublin. We discuss the pressures our peatlands face and the opportunities for nature and fighting climate change when we restore and rehabilitate our damaged bogland habitats.  Species of the week is the Common Snipe. This Pod...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we chat about the Common Buzzard. We discuss the recolonisation of the species across Ireland after a number of major historic setbacks. Despite its recent continued advance, Buzzards are still illegally targeted and killed. We talk Buzzard ecology and try to straighten-out some of the common misconceptions about the species. Species of the week is the Common (Ring...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode Ricky and Niall chat all things nest boxes. We chat about how to provide good nest box  accommodation for your garden birds, from how to build them, where to hang them and when to clean them.  We also discuss nest boxes for Swifts and Barn Owls which are species of high conservation concern who can be helped by the provision of specialised nest boxes.  The Species...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode Ricky and Niall chat about the annual spectacle of the dawn chorus, what it is and why birds sing their hearts out in springtime.  This episode includes lots of bird song audio for you to enjoy, whilst the Cuckoo is the chosen species for the Bird of The Week slot.  Special thanks this episode goes to Seán Ronayne of irishwildlifesounds.com for use of his bird reco...

Send us Fan Mail In the first ever In Your Nature Podcast, Ricky and Niall discuss how birds and nature helped us through Covid lockdowns and the value of nature in lifting our mood and maintaining good mental health.  Ricky and Niall also introduce the "Bird of the Week" segment, aimed to help you improve your bird knowledge and identification skills.  The In Your Nature podcast is edit...