Anja Murray: Canals and towpaths are bustling wildlife havens for swans, dragonflies, bats and more

Swans and cygnetson the Grand Canal in Athy, County Kildare. Picture: Niall Carson/PA Wire
Early in the last century, my great-grandfather was a lighterman on the Lagan canal, operating a barge that ran from Lough Neagh to Belfast. His cargo was primarily coal being brought from the docks in Belfast to the inner reaches of Ulster — and he returned to Belfast laden with turf and potatoes. My Dad would often recall the holidays he spent with his grandfather on the canal, being pulled along by horses on the tow-path. Days spent catching fish to cook on the little stove; watching wildlife; and excitedly helping with barge duties such as switching over to new teams of tow-horses from section to section.
I think of them now when I walk along canal tow paths, from Leitrim to Dublin and Kildare, imagining the strong work-horses and loaded barges moving slowly through the water. Even back when the canals were functional transport routes, my great grandfather enjoyed the quiet refuge of greenery and the company of wild things. Today, canals provide refuge for people and wildlife alike. Their water quality tends to be good too, protected from much of the agricultural runoff and other pollution that most Irish rivers suffer from.