THE United States is in the doghouse just now; its addiction to guns is wreaking havoc at home and abroad.

CONGRATULATIONS to Sinéad Shanahan of Stonehall Farm in Limerick.

BIRDWATCH Ireland needs your help; they want you to report any cuckoos, swallows or swifts which you see during the next few weeks. These three bird species are easy to identify, even without binoculars, so you don’t have to be a regular birdwatcher to do your bit.

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, of lightening conductor fame, was the first person to suggest that the clocks should be put forward in summer; his essay, ‘An Economical Project’, appeared in 1784 when the great man was living in Paris as an American delegate.

The betting shop on the main street in Malahide, where I live, does a roaring trade.

A STRANGE gull has taken up residence in the centre of Dublin. I have not seen the celebrity myself but Eric Dempsey, who runs the Birds of Ireland News Service (BINS) and is an authority on rare birds, has been keeping tabs on the visitor.

“And Moses stretched his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the waters to go back by a strong east wind ... and made the sea dry land.”

ONLY one of the seven wonders of the ancient world survives. The pyramids of Giza, just outside Cairo, have been standing for 4,600 years.

LITTLE creatures are often overlooked, while big ones get all the attention. Shrews are a case in point.

THERE ARE few certainties in life and even fewer when it comes to wildlife. Badgers in Britain live mainly on worms.