Wild Sligo

🦡 Mr Badger is out and about early tonight! 😊 It's always a thrill to encounter these beautiful and rarely-seen creatures in the wild. This photo was taken from a relatively long distance at maximum zoom to avoid disturbance.

🌳 Looking for a fun activity for your next woodland adventure with the little ones? I hereby present to you the 𝗦𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗼 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗼! An intuitive sighting-checklist game that can be played in a single day or spread out over multiple outings. I'm planning to create a coast-themed version as well! Please feel free to print it out or use it as a digital checklist on your phone. And if you feel creative, why not design your own local wildlife bingo? It's an engaging way for children (of all ages😉) to connect with nature and make your outdoor experiences even more memorable!

🌼 Something a little bit different today! A tiny fruit fly covered in bright yellow pollen, as seen under my pocket microscope. When we think of pollinators, bees and butterflies come to mind, but flies are just as critical in helping our wildflowers reproduce and thrive. Isn't it amazing how even the tiniest of creatures can play a significant role in the grand scheme of nature?

🦡 Badgers are creatures of habit and tend to follow regular pathways between their setts and foraging grounds, sometimes over many generations! Well-used paths like the one pictured here can be very conspicuous. They are typically quite narrow (about 20 cm), uniform in width and less messy than deer tracks. You can sometimes notice worn-off moss on roots or logs crossed by a badger path, as the badgers' bellies rub it off night after night.

🦆 "Where did mammy go?" 🙂 𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗱 ducklings (𝘈𝘯𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘺𝘳𝘩𝘺𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘴) are born precocial - meaning they can walk, swim, and feed themselves almost immediately after hatching. They stay with their mother until they can fly, at about two months of age.

🌊 A sea cliff like the stands of an enormous stadium looking over the Atlantic, bursting with the noise, energy, and life of a seabird colony. A breathtaking sight, the existence of which depends on an unexpectedly delicate balance: disruptions from climate change, human activities, and disease pose serious threats to the survival of these colonies.

At least three species are visible here, the 𝗸𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗶𝘄𝗮𝗸𝗲 (𝘙𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘢 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘺𝘭𝘢), the 𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁 (𝘜𝘳𝘪𝘢 𝘢𝘢𝘭𝘨𝘦), and a few 𝗿𝗮𝘇𝗼𝗿𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 (𝘈𝘭𝘤𝘢 𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘢) - all of which are included in Birdwatch Ireland's list of birds of conservation concern.

🐦‍⬛ A 𝗷𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗱𝗮𝘄 (𝘊𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘦𝘶𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘢) looking out at sea. I absolutely love corvids and I think most people seriously underestimate how beautiful these highly-intelligent birds can be. What about you, do you like crows?

🌳It's good to be back home in Sligo after a few weeks abroad. Into the woods now to set up the trail camera for some new wildlife videos! Looking forward to seeing if there are any cubs around this year. 🤞

🦫 Three baby 𝗰𝗼𝘆𝗽𝘂𝘀 (𝘔𝘺𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘺𝘱𝘶𝘴) following their mother along the banks of a river in the town I grew up in, in northern Italy. Lovely to see the babies out and about, and quite unusual as they are a mainly crepuscular/nocturnal species! Coypus are native to South America and were introduced to Europe by fur traders. A few individuals have been sighted in Ireland since 2010, particularly in Cork City. I grew up a stone's throw from here and this is the first time I have spotted a wild mammal along the river, a sign of times changing and coypus extending their range to the foot of the Alps. Sadly, there are much worse signs of the passing of time and the effects of human impact on wildlife: about 20 years ago, bats, swallows, house martins and fireflies were abundant at this time of year - they seem to have all but disappeared now.

🪲 Another picture from Italy today: a 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗹𝗲 (𝘖𝘹𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘺𝘳𝘦𝘢 𝘧𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢), a species that is not present in Ireland but is widely distributed in continental Europe. A member of the subfamily Cetoniinae, also known as flower chafers, they can be often observed on flowers feeding on pollen and nectar. They show distinctive white spots on the elytra and are covered in tiny white hair, also known as 'setae'.

🦎 I have been kind of quiet the last few weeks as I'm spending some time in continental Europe, and I find it's good to take a little break from social media from time to time. Here's a picture of a 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗮𝗿𝗱 (𝘗𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴) I took today in my native northern Italy. He doesn't seem happy with the paparazzi! 😬 As soon as the sun is high in the sky these fascinating reptiles pop out of every little nook and cranny to bask in the sunshine. Their extremely sharp claws allow them to climb up walls by interlocking into any slightly rough surface. This species is not present in Ireland, the common/viviparous lizard (𝘡𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘤𝘢 𝘷𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢) being our only native species of reptile.

🦋 Check out the Sligo Biodiversity Week events, starting tomorrow! 🙂

🪻 The lovely 𝗯𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗹 (𝘏𝘺𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘯-𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘱𝘵𝘢), one of our most beloved native wildflowers, famous for blanketing deciduous woodland with an enchanting carpet of violet-blue at this time of year. Each flower has cream anthers (the parts of the stamen where pollen is produced) and six backwards curving lobes. Bluebells attract a wide range of pollinators, particularly bumblebees, which makes them particularly valuable to wildlife.

🦌 An interesting find in the woods today - a 𝗳𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗿 (𝘋𝘢𝘮𝘢 𝘥𝘢𝘮𝘢) jawbone complete with several well-preserved teeth. Like other deer species, fallow deer have hypsodont dentition, characterised by high-crowned teeth with a rough surface adapted for crushing and grinding, and enamel which extends past the gum line. This provides lots of extra material for wear and tear from their coarse diet, ensuring prolonged functionality.

🪶 A pair of 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘀 (𝘓𝘢𝘳𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴). The term 'herring' in the English name presumably originated from this species' habit of following fishing trawlers. Scientifically, they are classified as 𝘓𝘢𝘳𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴 - 'larus' comes from the Greek for 'gull' and 'argentatus' is Latin for 'silvery'.

🪸 Fossil of a colonial 𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗹 - fascinating traces of wildlife from times long gone! A common and often overlooked find along our coast. The Rugosa are an extinct order of solitary and colonial corals that were abundant in the Middle Ordovician to Late Permian (about 450 to 250 million years ago). They are sometimes referred to as 'horn corals' due to their horn-shaped chamber with a wrinkled (rugose) wall, and they were carnivores, using their supposedly stinging tentacles to capture tiny prey.

🦋 A 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗼𝗱 butterfly (𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘦𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘢), freshly emerged from its chrysalis, resting on my kitchen window to find refuge from the stormy winds. This species is unusual in that it may overwinter in two different developmental species: either as a caterpillar or as a pupa.

🦊 Who doesn't love a mid-afternoon nap? Male 𝗳𝗼𝘅𝗲𝘀 (𝘝𝘶𝘭𝘱𝘦𝘴 𝘷𝘶𝘭𝘱𝘦𝘴) very rarely enter burrows (earths) - these are normally only used by the v***n and cubs for a few months in spring and early summer. For the rest of the year, both male and female foxes typically prefer to sleep under an open sky, or in the shelter of the undergrowth.

🐦 Spotted this beautiful 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗵 (𝘍𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘢 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘢) in Hazelwood this morning, an extremely rare visitor to Ireland! A very peculiar species native to the Fulia Islands, off the coast of Portugal. 🙂

🪶 A 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘁 (𝘌𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘢 𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘻𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘢) in flight. The breeding range of this species is impressively vast: it includes Ireland, Britain, southern Europe, the Middle East, much of Africa and southern Asia! The little egret was considered rare in Ireland until they first started breeding here in the 1990s.

🌼 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲 (𝘍𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘢 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘢), a little spot of sunshine on the woodland floor. One of the first flowers to appear after winter, they provide a source of nectar for pollinators emerging from hibernation. The plant is toxic if eaten raw, but archaeological finds of charred lesser celandine tubers in Scotland proved Mesolithic people cooked and consumed it as a source of carbohydrates.

🌊 Despite the weather, I decided to head off to Aughris Head today and was delighted to spend some time watching one of my absolute favourite birds, the 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗺𝗮𝗿 (𝘍𝘶𝘭𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘶𝘴 𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴). I love how these fascinating seabirds, closely related to albatrosses, glide effortlessly in the strongest winds, brushing against the rocky cliffs at full speed. They fly on stiff wings most of the time, making me think of paper planes. I wrote a little haiku about this fulmar that took a 15-minute nap before diving back into the wind. I hope you like it! 🙂

𝐹𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑝𝑎𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑒
𝑆𝑙𝑒𝑒𝑝 𝑤𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝑜𝑛 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑒
𝐷𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑎𝑙𝑡𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑠

🌊 A walk on Streedagh Beach in the earliest hours of a rainy morning. Not a soul in sight. The song of the sea, oystercatchers running, geese flying low over the waves, the fossils of ancient creatures enshrined in the rocks, and a feeling of absolute peace. The wild Atlantic at its best.