Nature in the News

Tiercel Dave · 04-06-2020 8:42am

magicbastarder wrote: »

the article is unclear if bonnie survived?

".....the foothills of the Knockmealdown Mountains near Clogheen. Sadly Bonnie passed away a few days later....."

magicbastarder · 04-06-2020 8:44am

damn, i somehow missed that.

Mickeroo · 04-06-2020 9:03am

What are these thicks even trying to achieve? It's the same type of morons who set fire to the countryside in the middle of a drought no doubt.

Eddie B · 04-06-2020 9:12am

What I can't understand, is where are they getting their hands on such poisons in this day and age? Or has it been sitting on a shelf for ten years or more

Alun · 04-06-2020 9:31am

The thing is, it's not an isolated incident. While the BOP poisonings make the headlines, there are also numerous reports of pet dogs being poisoned in the same way all over the country. What makes this worse though is that this was a dog being trained to potentially save someone's life.

New Home · 04-06-2020 9:58am

Eddie B wrote: »

What I can't understand, is where are they getting their hands on such poisons in this day and age? Or has it been sitting on a shelf for ten years or more

Anywhere. Rat poison, for instance. Causes internal haemorrhages. Vile, vile stuff. They hide it in chunks of meat or in meatballs. They might not have meant to poison that specific dog, they might have left that bait out for some poor fox ("vermin") or some other animal. Still, lots of animals, both pets and wildlife, are affected. Like I said, this should be tackled seriously.

Eddie B · 04-06-2020 10:10am

New Home wrote: »

Anywhere. Rat poison, for instance. Causes internal haemorrhages. Vile, vile stuff. They hide it in chunks of meat or in meatballs. They might not have meant to poison that specific dog, they might have left that bait out for some poor fox ("vermin") or some other animal. Still, lots of animals, both pets and wildlife, are affected. Like I said, this should be tackled seriously.

How much of your average rat poison bait would a dog need to take to kill it though? Something tells me this was no rat poison.

New Home · 04-06-2020 10:14am

Not much at all. It's really lethal. Even snail poison causes a lot of harm.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodenticide

Some rodenticides are lethal after one exposure while others require more than one. Rodents are disinclined to gorge on an unknown food (perhaps reflecting an adaptation to their inability to vomit), preferring to sample, wait and observe whether it makes them or other rats sick. This phenomenon of poison shyness is the rationale for poisons that kill only after multiple doses.
Besides being directly toxic to the mammals that ingest them, including dogs, cats, and humans, many rodenticides present a secondary poisoning risk to animals that hunt or scavenge the dead corpses of rats.

ZX7R · 04-06-2020 10:20am

magicbastarder wrote: »

the article is unclear if bonnie survived?

It's stated in the article that Bonnie passed away a couple of days later.

Alun · 04-06-2020 10:59am

Link to FB post from SARDA Ireland

I don't think the poison involved has been identified yet, but I'm sure it's being investigated thoroughly.

New Home · 04-06-2020 11:01am

Poor pet...

New Home · 14-06-2020 4:25pm

https://www.boredpanda.com/nesting-swan-shot-recovery-reunion/

SnowyMuckish · 23-06-2020 6:55pm

Lovely piece in the RTÉ news this evening about a WIT student who discovered a rare wild bee orchid in an area of the college that wasn’t mowed due to Covid and the importance of leaving areas unmowed.

Princess Calla · 23-06-2020 7:52pm

SnowyMuckish wrote: »

Lovely piece in the RTÉ news this evening about a WIT student who discovered a rare wild bee orchid in an area of the college that wasn’t mowed due to Covid and the importance of leaving areas unmowed.

How rare is the bee orchid? Beautiful flower. Just reading up on it and on the one hand says rare but then says found widespread? So just curious

SnowyMuckish · 23-06-2020 8:55pm

To be honest I wouldn’t have a clue, maybe one of the more experienced posters might know?

New Home · 23-06-2020 9:49pm

If I can hazard a guess, I'd say that it can be found in every area of ireland (as opposed to, say, a single bog in Mayo) but there aren't many plants around.

Princess Calla · 23-06-2020 10:21pm

New Home wrote: »

If I can hazard a guess, I'd say that it can be found in every area of ireland (as opposed to, say, a single bog in Mayo) but there aren't many plants around.

Yeah that sounds plausible.... The burren is usually good for everything.

I know they are on bull Island though I haven't seen one, but wasn't looking for one either.

Just it making news headlines got me thinking.

whyulittle · 26-06-2020 7:11pm

Pretty in pink: Rare grasshopper spotted in local bog!
A local family's trip to the bog to foot some turf resulted a memorable sighting when a rare pink grasshopper caught their eye recently!

James and TJ Elliott, aged 8 and 10, were footing turf with their parents John and Brigit in Waterstown bog, near Glasson, when they noticed the distinctive insect (photographed above by Brigit Elliott).

"We were amazed by the little creature," John told the Westmeath Independent.

"The pink grasshopper does stand out, but you have to be on the lookout as it was very small.

Read full story...

Princess Calla · 26-06-2020 8:31pm

whyulittle wrote: »

Read full story...[/url]

Maybe he's a normal grasshopper on his way to Pride

Ah he's a gorgeous lil fella.

That will have made the boys summer

magicbastarder · 27-06-2020 6:56pm

didn't expect this (hope it's true):

https://twitter.com/NextIrishGE/status/1276917252798001152

Eddie B · 27-06-2020 8:19pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

didn't expect this (hope it's true):

https://twitter.com/NextIrishGE/status/1276917252798001152

Hate talking politics, but this one hasn't a clue. Green Party being in power sounds good in theory, but for me, headless chickens comes to mind.

baaba maal · 29-06-2020 11:28am

Eddie B wrote: »

Hate talking politics, but this one hasn't a clue. Green Party being in power sounds good in theory, but for me, headless chickens comes to mind.

I don't know her at all, but I was aware she has some farming background.

From her biog:
"I hold a BSc in Agriculture from the University of Essex, a postgraduate diploma from University College Dublin, and a PhD from the University of Limerick. I took leave from academic research and lecturing to raise my family. I live on a mixed organic farm (suckler cows, sheep, hens and horses) with ...."

I'm struggling to think of any other Irish minister with more qualifications in agriculture.

Eddie B · 30-06-2020 9:45am

baaba maal wrote: »

I don't know her at all, but I was aware she has some farming background.

From her biog:
"I hold a BSc in Agriculture from the University of Essex, a postgraduate diploma from University College Dublin, and a PhD from the University of Limerick. I took leave from academic research and lecturing to raise my family. I live on a mixed organic farm (suckler cows, sheep, hens and horses) with ...."

I'm struggling to think of any other Irish minister with more qualifications in agriculture.

Yes, that all looks very good. She went to school, and her husband does a little farming. Thing is, and this goes for all members of the Green Party, her agendas seem to overtake rational decission making.

Although I share some of the same values and passions as the Greens, I could never vote for them. They almost destroyed this country, the last time they were in power. Same thing, party agendas overriding common sense, and fair and ballanced decision making.

Now I also don't know Pippa personally, but I have read some of her posts on Facebook, and some of it was downright rediculous.

One I remember well, where she had a picture of herself, beside a road margin. She exclaimed that she was calling on Offaly Co Council, to stop digging out trenches on road margins, because they were destroying habitat, or something on that line.

Now you, me, and the dog next door knows that these so called trenches, are dug in area's where water sits on the road. It's to allow water to run off, therefore to prevent accidents. This is common knowledge, and common sense.

That's just one of many, worryingly strange posts she has made.

This is what i mean about personal passions resulting in irrational decision making, and this is downright dangerous

All the education in the world, means nothing, when your acting like a fool.

Sorry, if this sounds harsh, but this sort of thing really boils my blood.

baaba maal · 30-06-2020 5:49pm

Eddie B wrote: »

Yes, that all looks very good. She went to school, and her husband does a little farming. Thing is, and this goes for all members of the Green Party, her agendas seem to overtake rational decission making.

Although I share some of the same values and passions as the Greens, I could never vote for them. They almost destroyed this country, the last time they were in power. Same thing, party agendas overriding common sense, and fair and ballanced decision making.

Now I also don't know Pippa personally, but I have read some of her posts on Facebook, and some of it was downright rediculous.

One I remember well, where she had a picture of herself, beside a road margin. She exclaimed that she was calling on Offaly Co Council, to stop digging out trenches on road margins, because they were destroying habitat, or something on that line.

Now you, me, and the dog next door knows that these so called trenches, are dug in area's where water sits on the road. It's to allow water to run off, therefore to prevent accidents. This is common knowledge, and common sense.

That's just one of many, worryingly strange posts she has made.

This is what i mean about personal passions resulting in irrational decision making, and this is downright dangerous

All the education in the world, means nothing, when your acting like a fool.

Sorry, if this sounds harsh, but this sort of thing really boils my blood.

I accept the thrust of what you are saying (and the ditch issue sounds poor alright)- and I am most certainly not claiming she is perfect. But if you take the last number of ministers for agriculture and ask how have they secured the fuure of Irish farming, the answer is- they haven't. The usual platitudes about Irish farmers getting their "fair share" when they head of to Brussels, and yet, after all the chicanery in the beef industry, Goodman still sits at the top of the pile, hoovering all the profit away from the farmers. She at least will have some understanding of how (for economic reasons) farming needs to pivot away from the current model if it is to survive in anything other than further consolidation and loss of wildlife. Origin Green is an embarrassing figleaf for the failed policies over the last fifty years.

One thing that isn't true is that the Greens were responsible for nearly destroying the country last time- you need to pin that back on the FF back where it belongs. Yes, they were the mudguard, but if people think that taxing diesel cars is what ruined us then memories are short. FF blew up this country with their credit-fuelled property bubble, the Greens would not have followed the idiotic policies that preceded their time in government.

Eddie B · 01-07-2020 10:53am

baaba maal wrote: »

I accept the thrust of what you are saying (and the ditch issue sounds poor alright)- and I am most certainly not claiming she is perfect. But if you take the last number of ministers for agriculture and ask how have they secured the fuure of Irish farming, the answer is- they haven't. The usual platitudes about Irish farmers getting their "fair share" when they head of to Brussels, and yet, after all the chicanery in the beef industry, Goodman still sits at the top of the pile, hoovering all the profit away from the farmers. She at least will have some understanding of how (for economic reasons) farming needs to pivot away from the current model if it is to survive in anything other than further consolidation and loss of wildlife. Origin Green is an embarrassing figleaf for the failed policies over the last fifty years.

One thing that isn't true is that the Greens were responsible for nearly destroying the country last time- you need to pin that back on the FF back where it belongs. Yes, they were the mudguard, but if people think that taxing diesel cars is what ruined us then memories are short. FF blew up this country with their credit-fuelled property bubble, the Greens would not have followed the idiotic policies that preceded their time in government.

Fair points. I suppose the best way to change peoples minds is with your actions.

I'd be more than happy to be proven wrong with reguards pippa's ability's.

It certainly is an interesting position for her. Pleasing the farming community, whilst being passionate about the environment, will be a hard roll to play.

Alun · 01-07-2020 8:12pm

https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2020/0701/1150815-green-party-environment-groups/

I'm gobsmacked.

baaba maal · 01-07-2020 8:15pm

Alun wrote: »

https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2020/0701/1150815-green-party-environment-groups/

I'm gobsmacked.

That is ridiculous- they may roll back on this as they cannot justify that when challenged.

Mr Crispy · 01-07-2020 8:47pm

FFS. Idiocy.

SnowyMuckish · 01-07-2020 9:08pm

Utter lunacy, there couldn’t be two departments with such polar opposite values. Obviously both are very important in their own right but blend them together and you know who’s going to lose out.

Base price · 01-07-2020 9:36pm

It appears to me that the green tail is wagging the rest of the body :mad:

magicbastarder · 01-07-2020 10:00pm

Alun wrote: »

https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2020/0701/1150815-green-party-environment-groups/

I'm gobsmacked.

the NPWS has been given to green party TD malcolm noonan, who is now junior minister for heritage and electoral reform.
i couldn't give two ****es where the NPWS sits as long as a) it has someone sensible looking out for it, and b) it gets more budget. the budget obviously is a looming battle.

magicbastarder · 03-07-2020 10:26am

Commission to refer Ireland to Court of Justice of the EU over failure on conservation measures
Ireland has been referred to the Eurpean Court of Justice over its persistent failure to designate special areas of conservation (SACs), more than five years after the deadline expired.
Under the Habitats Directive, EU member states must designate such areas with specific conservation objectives and corresponding measures to maintain or restore a favourable status for the species and habitats present.
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/commission-to-refer-ireland-to-court-of-justice-of-the-eu-over-failure-on-conservation-measures-1.4294916

OpenYourEyes · 03-07-2020 12:53pm

An update from the Rockabill Tern conservation project - chicks are hatching and things are getting busy!

https://birdwatchireland.ie/rockablog-thousands-of-tern-chicks-hatch-on-rockabill/

baaba maal · 03-07-2020 4:47pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

Commission to refer Ireland to Court of Justice of the EU over failure on conservation measures
Ireland has been referred to the Eurpean Court of Justice over its persistent failure to designate special areas of conservation (SACs), more than five years after the deadline expired.
Under the Habitats Directive, EU member states must designate such areas with specific conservation objectives and corresponding measures to maintain or restore a favourable status for the species and habitats present.
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/commission-to-refer-ireland-to-court-of-justice-of-the-eu-over-failure-on-conservation-measures-1.4294916

This might be good news in terms of conservation work on the SACs being actually being carried out. The NPWS will definitely need more money to take this on though.

Birdnuts · 03-07-2020 9:16pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

Commission to refer Ireland to Court of Justice of the EU over failure on conservation measures
Ireland has been referred to the Eurpean Court of Justice over its persistent failure to designate special areas of conservation (SACs), more than five years after the deadline expired.
Under the Habitats Directive, EU member states must designate such areas with specific conservation objectives and corresponding measures to maintain or restore a favourable status for the species and habitats present.
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/commission-to-refer-ireland-to-court-of-justice-of-the-eu-over-failure-on-conservation-measures-1.4294916

A very interesting post has gone up this evening on the Golden Eagle Trust FB page concerning some of these matters - The phrase "Foxes in charge of the Henhouse" springs to mind!!

magicbastarder · 03-07-2020 10:26pm

i saw that earlier. there go any government grants...

cameramonkey · 03-07-2020 11:26pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

i saw that earlier. there go any government grants...

We will see if the Green minister is committed to the environment or to the permanent government.

stevespring · 05-07-2020 1:08am

I have to take my hat off to the the golden eagle trust, that was a hard hitting statement. Doubtful it will come to much and it will certainly hurt their bottom line but at least they have principles.

It's a pity similar, more prominent charities prefer to lay low so as to feather their own nests rather than highlight the systemic problems within NPWS.

Birdnuts · 11-07-2020 1:39am

https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/departmental-shake-up-does-not-bode-well-for-long-neglected-biodiversity-crisis-1.4300367?fbclid=IwAR0BYFBPC9tt9-KbVz5jYYfeE0rgMXD_g0MJKK6bq5w6cNJvx10fj-HVUjQ

Highlights again that a major clearout is needed in the upper levels of the NPWS before it becomes anywhere near fit for purpose - the sad neglect our our NPs is in itself a scandal!!

Del.Monte · 11-07-2020 7:45am

The Greens are too worried about LGBT rights, BLM, leadership issues, political correctness, virtue signalling, direct provision, the Irish language and other left wing issues to do anything about the NPWS or the environment.

Birdnuts · 11-07-2020 1:05pm

Del.Monte wrote: »

The Greens are too worried about LGBT rights, BLM, leadership issues, political correctness, virtue signalling, direct provision, the Irish language and other left wing issues to do anything about the NPWS or the environment.

Well I intend to make a list of the issues highlighted in recent weeks and ask the new minister what he is going to do about the sorry state of the NPWS?? I would encourage everyone else who cares about the issue to email etc him and keep the pressure up on the "problem" individuals within the organisation

Bsal · 13-07-2020 2:16am

A Bearded Vulture has shown up in England this week thought to have come in from Swiss Alps

https://twitter.com/willbowell/status/1282304350325538817?s=20

Birdnuts · 13-07-2020 4:59pm

Bsal wrote: »

A Bearded Vulture has shown up in England this week thought to have come in from Swiss Alps

https://twitter.com/willbowell/status/1282304350325538817?s=20

Vulture populations are recovering well in Western Europe and its probably only a matter of time before they become regular visitors to these islands. Even now immature Griffons are now regular visitors to the likes of Holland and Belgium

odyssey06 · 13-07-2020 6:37pm

I expect a Daily Mash headline soon linking the arrival of the vultures with the general virus inspired armageddon...

odyssey06 · 15-07-2020 3:29pm

Birders are continuing to flock to Greystones in Co Wicklow after what is believed to be the first ever sighting of a Brown Booby in Ireland.
The large seabird is usually found fishing in tropical waters in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean.
It was spotted yesterday afternoon in Greystones and has delighted birders by loitering at the beach today.

https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2020/0714/1153244-booby-bird/

0014cd9f-614.jpg?ratio=1.78

Del.Monte · 16-07-2020 7:23am

This has been on numerous Facebook pages over the last couple of days and the disgusting scenes that followed have ended up with the unfortunate bird being taken to a wildlife centre in Co.Kildare. So called "birders" like "train spotters" are at the low end of their respective gene pools.

https://www.kildarenow.com/news/news/558649/brown-booby-now-in-intensive-care-at-kildare-animal-foundation.html

OpenYourEyes · 16-07-2020 9:35am

Del.Monte wrote: »

This has been on numerous Facebook pages over the last couple of days and the disgusting scenes that followed have ended up with the unfortunate bird being taken to a wildlife centre in Co.Kildare. So called "birders" like "train spotters" are at the low end of their respective gene pools.

https://www.kildarenow.com/news/news/558649/brown-booby-now-in-intensive-care-at-kildare-animal-foundation.html

I'm usually the first to condemn birders when there has been bad behaviour (e.g. at the Quail in Wicklow last year - hounded around the place, despite being a potential breeding site for a rare species!). Same re: wildlife photographers (Gannet and Puffin photos on Saltees - again, terrible behavior). But in this instance, this is a bird that's thousands of kilometres away from where it should be and it has lost over a third of it's weight. You simply don't lost 500g in 24 hours because of being chased around a beach. That bird was always going to collapse. It will have burned off all of its fat reserves and likely burned off a lot of muscle too, to get here. Birds generally don't come back from that. With a bit of luck and expert care from KAF hopefully it will pull through, though I'd err on the side of pessimism unfortunately.

I was at Greystones within an hour or so of the news going out, and at that stage all of the birders were keeping their distance, as were members of the public. At that point the bird was looking in good health and feeding (or at least diving), though that didn't preclude the inevitability of its collapse. I can't vouch for anything that happened after that (I didn't hang around long), but the species is known to be very tolerant of people in parts of its native range and from photos I've seen it was landing beside people on the beach.

magicbastarder · 16-07-2020 9:41am

yeah, i was thinking that the water the bird was diving in must have been maybe 20C below the water it's used to?

FlipperThePriest · 17-07-2020 11:17am

https://www.rte.ie/news/2020/0716/1153740-corncrake-farm/

Great work for a bird who's habitat has been ravaged by farming. Lovely looking meadow too. I think I may have read about his efforts on here before? Or maybe in the news.

17-07-2020 11:22am

zippy84 wrote: »

https://www.rte.ie/news/2020/0716/1153740-corncrake-farm/

Great work for a bird who's habitat has been ravaged by farming. Lovely looking meadow too. I think I may have read about his efforts on here before? Or maybe in the news.

I think he's a reasonably active poster on here too, very informed.

Nature in the News

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