Nature on your farm.

Base price

Biodiversity Ireland are looking for us to participate in a recording scheme - Farmers Wildlife Calendar: Climate Tracker.
Press release: https://www.biodiversityireland.ie/press-release-farmers-asked-to-help-shed-light-on-irelands-evolving-wildlife-calendar-in-response-to-climate-change/?fbclid=IwAR1rQPGF2eQG_xhjNe5haXZ1hp2Aec1Nlf3-FvrI2viUHQhd5x5YUWPIlAA
Link to scheme: https://www.biodiversityireland.ie/record-biodiversity/farmers-wildlife-calendar-climate-tracker/

Buford T. Justice XIX

Bit of good news from Johnstown Castle.

https://twitter.com/johnstowncastle/status/1233079861331316737?s=19

zetecescort

Buford T. Justice VI wrote: »

Bit of good news from Johnstown Castle.

https://twitter.com/johnstowncastle/status/1233079861331316737?s=19

Harm is an unfortunate name for a wildlife expert

Buford T. Justice XIX

zetecescort wrote: »

Harm is an unfortunate name for a wildlife expert

Yeah, I had to read it a second time to make sure I wasn't missing some joke there:D

SmartinMartin

Plenty of spawn this month :

Buford T. Justice XIX

Alder starting to bud down here, spring is getting close now.

Base price

SmartinMartin wrote: »

Plenty of spawn this month :

You may not have heard about the initiative from biodiversityireland.ie asking farmers to record certain events - https://www.biodiversityireland.ie/record-biodiversity/farmers-wildlife-calendar-climate-tracker/

blue5000

Went for a walk trying to unblock a few bridges to try let water levels drop a bit, came across this little newt ~(thanks lime tree farm).

SmartinMartin

Wow Blue, what part of the country? The only place I've ever seen lizards in this country was in an old quarry at the back of Swords in Dublin.

blue5000

I'm in N Tipp, I've seen them before on dry land usually in the summer, but this is my first time seeing one in water.

SmartinMartin

Incredible. As far as I know we only have the one species here.

Base price

blue5000 wrote: »

I'm in N Tipp, I've seen them before on dry land usually in the summer, but this is my first time seeing one in water.

Could you record the sighting along with the picture to https://www.biodiversityireland.ie/

blue5000

Base price wrote: »

Could you record the sighting along with the picture to https://www.biodiversityireland.ie/

I could ya. And have the farm on a shortlist for an SAC:eek:

Lime Tree Farm

Always look for the number of toes, a lizard has five, a newt has four.

SmartinMartin

Some sunset over the bay last night:

Lady Haywire

Seen a (dead) pine marten on the road this evening:(
On the plus side there was a very live fox, badger & a female deer. Spring is in the air! When I go walking these last few nights I can hear snipe too.
Oh and our whooper swans left too, just the mute pair remaining now, looking for a nest site I think.

Lime Tree Farm

There are 4 Whitethorns in the hedgerow that come into leaf earlier than the others every year.

first Whitethorn of Spring 2020.jpg

Whitethorn Hedge row.jpg

The cat brought back some bird's eggshells last week, he must have raided a nest. I think the pigeons are nesting in the ivy.

Thargor

blue5000 wrote: »

Went for a walk trying to unblock a few bridges to try let water levels drop a bit, came across this little newt ~(thanks lime tree farm).

[IMG][/img]

I cycled the Grand Canal from Mullingar back to Dublin last Summer, saw a good few of them, well 4 or 5 anyway, never saw them anywhere else before.

But what does this mean?

~(thanks lime tree farm).

blue5000

Thargor wrote: »

I cycled the Grand Canal from Mullingar back to Dublin last Summer, saw a good few of them, well 4 or 5 anyway, never saw them anywhere else before.

But what does this mean?[/QUOTE]

I originally thought it was a lizard, then Lime tree farm posted about newts having only 4 toes, so I realized after I had posted the pic that it is a newt not a lizard.

SmartinMartin

Not exactly nature, but a very old and nearly extinct trade. Thatching in Kerry today ;

tabby aspreme

Bit of housekeeping going on here, probably a delivery suite

Base price

tabby aspreme wrote: »

Bit of housekeeping going on here, probably a delivery suite

Badger sett?

uck51js9zml2yt

SmartinMartin wrote: »

Not exactly nature, but a very old and nearly extinct trade. Thatching in Kerry today ;

Where is it. Would be nice to bring the family over and show them how it's done. Wife is a foreigner

SmartinMartin

Kenmare

tabby aspreme

Base price wrote: »

Badger sett?

It started out years ago as a rabbit burrow, for the last few weeks something has been making it bigger, I think its a fox, not big enough for a badger

PoorFarmer

Any idea what would make this type of burrow/nest? Am guessing rodent. Is in a field that has been overgrown for 5-6 years. Is unjust a big tuft of grass

Thargor

You forgot to attach a pic...

PoorFarmer

Thargor wrote: »

You forgot to attach a pic...

Ooops

CHOPS01

I have a pair of birds of prey who I reckon are nesting in a big old evergreen here on the farm. Spotted one of them about 10 days ago but I've now realized there is a pair which is pretty is exciting.Not sure what they are though. Pretty big in size. They are having a few squabbles with crows and jackdaws.
Would they be buzzards ?

The Rabbi

CHOPS01 wrote: »

I have a pair of birds of prey who I reckon are nesting in a big old evergreen here on the farm. Spotted one of them about 10 days ago but I've now realized there is a pair which is pretty is exciting.Not sure what they are though. Pretty big in size. They are having a few squabbles with crows and jackdaws.
Would they be buzzards ?

If they are bigger than the crows and the crows are chasing them.They are
probably buzzards.