More than 100 free events in national parks and reserves for Biodiversity Week
From left: Catherine O’Toole, Irish Environmental Network; Biodiversity minister Christopher O’Sullivan; Karen Ciesielski, chief executive of the Irish Environmental Network; and Niall Ó Donnchu, director general of the National Parks and Wildlife Service.
There will be over one hundred free events for the public to attend as part of National Biodiversity Week across the country.
National Biodiversity Week is supported by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and organised by the Irish Environmental Network.
The NPWS is planning to host more than 100 events in national parks, nature reserves and other sites.
Opportunities to connect with nature and learn from local experts and groups actively working to protect Ireland’s natural heritage will run from May 15 to May 24.
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Events include everything from whale watching, farm walks, bat walks, biodiversity cycle tours, field trips, nature walks, to wildlife watching and woodland workshops.
Biodiversity minister Christopher O’Sullivan, said: “Each year, National Biodiversity Week gets bigger and better — and reflects a growing public appetite and interest in nature.
I’m also encouraging everyone to take this opportunity to visit a national park or nature reserve, to experience the full variety of incredible species and habitats that we are working to protect.”
Speaking in advance of the UN International Day for Biological Diversity on May 22, the minister said: “We all depend on nature — for our food, water, fuel, shelter and energy. Small changes in our own communities contribute to a bigger, global vision of nature which is healthy and vibrant. The success of our efforts to restore nature relies on all of us, in communities and across Government, working together.”
Director general with the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Niall Ó Donnchú, said: “Nature protection thrives when communities feel ownership of place. National Biodiversity Week can inspire long-term nature conservation initiatives, stronger local participation, intergenerational learning, and renewed respect for the delicate balance that sustains all life.
"This week reconnects people with the understanding that protecting nature is not an occasional act, but part of the cycle of everyday living.”
Events organised by the National Parks and Wildlife Service include:
- Bioblitzes at Killarney National Park and Connemara National Park. Bioblitzes is when communities come together to find and record as many species as they can in a particular area;
- Wild Nephin National Park is organising a native trees workshop, talks about Ireland’s birds of prey and a nature treasure hunt for families;
- Wicklow Mountains National Park will allow attendees to see and hear more about the restoration work under way, or join a dawn chorus at Knocksink Wood Nature Reserve;
- Enhance biodiversity in your garden — Join NPWS staff for a guided tour of the national park at Dowth, with tips to boost the variety of plants and wildlife in your garden, or learn about the secret life of bats on a bat walk in the park;
- Join a butterfly walk at the Burren National Park or spend a morning wildlife watching at Coole Park Nature Reserve;
- The hugely successful Biodiversity Week festival, ‘Le Chéile don Dúlra’ is set to return to Glenveagh National Park in Donegal for a second year. The programme of events will celebrate the national park’s unique landscape, history, people, nature and conservation work, with a special emphasis on communication via the arts;
- Hear more about the species found around the coastal habitats of Páirc Náisiúnta na Mara, Ciarraí, including waders, wildfowl, sharks and rays, and the natterjack toad.
For more information about National Biodiversity Week and events that may be taking place near you, visit the Biodiversity Week website.
