THE spectacle of a hare bounding along a hillside always lifts the spirits. Be on the lookout, for this is a time of a year when you see these normally quiet- living creatures performing dramatic acts. 

Very soon, the hills in parts of the south and west will be ablaze, writes Donal Hickey

ONCE a familiar sight in upland areas, the red grouse is only rarely seen these days, says Donal Hickey. 

We must look after our country’s wetlands, writes Donal Hickey

WE HEAR a lot these days about a condition known as nature deficit disorder — the ill effects on children resulting from lack of direct contact with the natural world — while at the same time there were never more school programmes on the environment, writes Donal Hickey.

AN elderly nun of our acquaintance, long since living overseas, likes to whimsically recall the days when she could look out the front door of her old home and watch geese in the bog below, writes Donal Hickey

THERE’S an old saying about people whose word is dodgy — that they’d promise you blackberries for Christmas.