Outdoors

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#Outdoors

A COMPREHENSIVE SERIES OF ARTICLES ON THIS TOPIC

<p>Cats are among the most widespread and efficient predators on Earth, and unlike most hunters, they have been given a global passport by humans.</p>

outdoors

Paws for thought: Cats might just be the purr-fect predator

Cats are not just companions; they are, ecologically speaking, small but highly effective predators and we need to take their impact seriously

<p>Last year, Cork City Council received over 850 complaints of illegal dumping. Picture: iStock</p>

outdoors

Messaging being lost under piles of unlawfully dumped rubbish

<p>You might expect that hedgehogs, rummaging for creepy-crawlies in leaf-litter, would have little use for high-pitched noise detection. But you’d be wrong! Picture: iStiock</p>

outdoors

Spike in numbers: Sounds good for hedgehog survival rates

Bumble Bee

outdoors

The many ways to be a wild bee — and what we can do to help them

Humpback whales take more mature approach to mating

outdoors

Humpback whales take more mature approach to mating

Uluru Road Sign

outdoors

What’s in a place name? Lots of human fingerprints as it happens

wetland scenery

For peat's sake: We cannot afford to let the damage to our wetlands continue

Amid widespread calls for extensive peatland restoration, that horticultural peat mining is continuing unabated in Ireland is a baffling scenario and one which cannot be allowed continue, writes Anja Murray

Wed, 18 Mar, 2026

Want to see the Northern Lights? Meet the Mayo man behind Aurora Feed

Want to see the Northern Lights? Meet the Mayo man behind Aurora Feed

As we enter a period when the Northern Lights may be visible again in Ireland, Jenny McEntegart talks to a Mayo man who wants to unite fans of the phenomenon

Tue, 17 Mar, 2026

Step back in time to explore the island stronghold of Mayo’s warrior queen

Step back in time to explore the island stronghold of Mayo’s warrior queen

Check out Clare Island’s many defensive structures and its harbourside castle while taking in expansive views over a pristine wilderness dotted with picturesque lakes

Sat, 14 Mar, 2026

Close-up image of Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) perched on seaside black, hard plastic dumpster refuse bin, scavenging fish a

Same species, different city: Is nature losing its local accent?

Human activity is reshuffling biodiversity globally, allowing a relatively small group of adaptable species to spread widely, while more specialised species decline

Sat, 14 Mar, 2026

Fresh Potato Harvest

Spring is in the air — here's how you can take biodiversity action from your garden

With spring in the air, more people are getting out into the garden and keeping wildlife in mind by opting for eco-friendly and organic products

Thu, 12 Mar, 2026

Undervalued and overlooked: Scrub is nature’s way of rewilding — here's how

Undervalued and overlooked: Scrub is nature’s way of rewilding — here's how

Whatever the type of landscape, scrub habitats are just as significant as more celebrated hedgerows, offering a similar suite of benefits

Wed, 11 Mar, 2026

Winter weather Feb 16th 2026

Ireland’s seasonal identity crisis — what is it and how can we adjust?

It’s March. The daffodils are out, the evenings are getting longer, and winter is officially over. Or is it ...?

Fri, 06 Mar, 2026

Cainism may help restore eagle numbers in Ireland — here's how

Cainism may help restore eagle numbers in Ireland — here's how

Eagles can’t afford to raise two siblings here and so a form of siblicide observed in youngsters may ironically help Irish restoration

Thu, 05 Mar, 2026

dirty double wheels of agriculture tractor on dirt road at sunny summer day with green field in the background

Is there any truth in the weather lore around the month of March?

One common belief amongst previous generations was that if March was preceded by dry weather, the month itself would be wet

Thu, 05 Mar, 2026

Country Diary Archive : Western European hedgehog

Hedgehogs are waking up from their long winter slumber but they cannot move about as they need

In March, hedgehogs are waking up from hibernation and will soon begin venturing out from their cosy nests in search of food

Wed, 04 Mar, 2026

Google Sky launched

Sky Matters: The universe still challenges our understanding of it as we get to know it

We should not despair that we live in a universe which is beyond our understanding. We can in fact be confident that we do understand much about how the universe works

Sun, 01 Mar, 2026

Follow in the footsteps of our ancestors on this cliffwalk along an old railway track with views over Dublin Bay

Follow in the footsteps of our ancestors on this cliffwalk along an old railway track with views over Dublin Bay

Today, Howth is mainly a tourist area, offering a fine selection of accessible walks, beginning conveniently from Howth Railway Station. One of the best of these is the Tramline Loop

Sun, 01 Mar, 2026

Nesting woodpecker

The percussion of the great spotted woodpecker — a forgotten sound after such a long absence

The woodpecker’s place in Ireland isn’t a closed chapter with a neat conclusion. It’s an unfinished story

Fri, 27 Feb, 2026

Winter weather Jan 26th 2025

Lack of urgency identified in preparing for weather crises

A recent survey found that one-fifth of EU homes do not have any household measures to protect against extreme weather

Thu, 26 Feb, 2026

Inishbofin makes a marvellous place to explore

Inishbofin makes a marvellous place to explore

With a developed infrastructure for welcoming tourists, Inishbofin island is well worth a visit, boasting unmatched coastal vistas and pristine white sand beaches

Sat, 21 Feb, 2026

An undated handout photo made available

River fishing ban seen to reverse biodiversity decline

In response to biodiversity collapse in the Yangtze river, China dramatically implemented a 10-year, full commercial fishing ban across the entire river basin

Fri, 20 Feb, 2026

Meowing a tool cats use to control their keepers

Meowing a tool cats use to control their keepers

A feline companion is a calming presence, especially if it’s a regular purrer

Thu, 19 Feb, 2026

Finding frogspawn still stirs some excitement

Finding frogspawn still stirs some excitement

Common frogs are not especially fussy about where they lay their eggs, but they do follow the same routes to get to spawning areas that have been followed by many generations of their predecessors

Thu, 19 Feb, 2026

barn swallow flies fast

Changes in nature aren’t always that predictable

The natural world is not bound by dates on the calendar. Such matters are dictated by changes in temperature and lengthening daylight

Thu, 19 Feb, 2026

Climate change of The Planet Earth and environmental awareness concept

S Pádraic Fogarty: Ecosystem collapse is real and is happening here now

Ireland can breeze through the collapse of our own ecosystems because of the stabilising effect of much larger ecosystems elsewhere. Now those ecosystems too are at risk of collapse, due principally to livestock farming and industrial fishing but supercharged by the burning of fossil fuels and the pollution of waterways, writes ecologist Pádraic Fogarty

Sun, 15 Feb, 2026

Crabs on the road traffic sign - Christmas Island

A monopoly win isn't always good — what happens when one species takes over

Snake Island, Christmas Island, and Ireland's Saltee Islands, all show what happens when ecological balance tips and a single organism becomes just a little too successful

Fri, 13 Feb, 2026

Lambay Island

Pest project planned for Lambay (Island)

By the way, the 'ay' in the name Lambay comes from old Norse meaning ‘island’. So this island should just be called ‘Lambay’ and not ‘Lambay Island’

Thu, 12 Feb, 2026

Air pollution problems — you can almost taste the smoke in the air on cold evenings

Air pollution problems — you can almost taste the smoke in the air on cold evenings

There are major challenges at EU level to achieve the ambitious goal of reducing premature deaths from air pollution by 55% by 2030

Thu, 12 Feb, 2026

Ants — the tiny architects of a healthy planet

Ants — the tiny architects of a healthy planet

With often secret civilisations beneath our feet ants have sophisticated social lives and even practiced agriculture millions of years before humans

Wed, 11 Feb, 2026

Birds of Ireland: Goldcrest

Birds of Ireland: Goldcrest

Goldcrests are the smallest bird in Europe — they are just 9cm long with a wingspan of 14cm

Sat, 07 Feb, 2026

Coastal brown bear, also known as Grizzly Bear (Ursus Arctos) carrying a silver salmon or coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) tha

Salmon deaths and a tyre pollution trial

A US judge will decide if, as research suggests, a chemical tyre additive is harming endangered fish species

Fri, 06 Feb, 2026

Why are Irish communities seeing more flooding and several 'one-in-100-year' floods?

Why are Irish communities seeing more flooding and several 'one-in-100-year' floods?

A one-in-100-year flood does not mean a flood that happens once a century. It means a flood with a 1% chance of occurring in any given year. Two such floods can occur in back-to-back years, or several can occur in a single decade

Fri, 06 Feb, 2026

Views of Sunrise in Clontarf,Dublin.

Are brent geese becoming city geese?

The pale-bellied brent goose, probably the world’s most northerly breeding bird, nests on remote uninhabited islands in Arctic Canada and the 'goose army' arrives in Ireland in winter

Thu, 05 Feb, 2026

Ambitious tree-planting project targets small, half-forgotten spaces

Ambitious tree-planting project targets small, half-forgotten spaces

The 100 Million Trees project uses the Japanese miyawaki method of tree-growing where thousands of trees can be planted close together in relatively small spaces

Thu, 05 Feb, 2026

New study on indiscriminate death traps known as tangle nets

S New study on indiscriminate death traps known as tangle nets

We need a ban on the use of tangle netting to bring an end to the carnage of threatened and protected species says ecologist Pádraic Fogarty as a new Marine Institute report highlights serious problems facing wildlife in Ireland's first marine environment National Park

Sun, 01 Feb, 2026

Sky Matters: February's big space event is NASA’s Artemis II mission

Sky Matters: February's big space event is NASA’s Artemis II mission

This will be the first time humans have embarked on a journey towards the moon since 1972 when Apollo 17 completed the manned exploration of our nearest neighbour

Sat, 31 Jan, 2026

Sinkhole Swallows a Car in Florida

An unsettling natural hazard: Here's everything you need to know about sinkholes

Sinkholes are surprisingly selective. They require the right rock, the right water chemistry, the right underground space and just enough time...

Fri, 30 Jan, 2026

Malaria drug research

Climate change and deforestation helping mosquitos thrive

As the Atlantic Forest dwindles mosquitoes end up feeding more on humans out of convenience — and the risk of disease increases

Thu, 29 Jan, 2026

Flowers are great... until they bloom at the wrong time

Flowers are great... until they bloom at the wrong time

Results of the 16th annual New Year Plant Hunt show how our weather is changing, impacting flowering times and other wildlife — birds, bees, butterflies, and a wide range of pollinators — that depend on our wild plants

Wed, 28 Jan, 2026

Eurasian blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) eating red berries

Birds of Ireland: Blue tit

Blue tits are smaller than robins and both sexes appear similar

Sat, 24 Jan, 2026

Written on the walls: what lichens tell us about our environment

Written on the walls: what lichens tell us about our environment

Lichens have no roots, no waxy leaves and no way to filter what they absorb. Everything they take in comes directly from the atmosphere so they are extraordinarily sensitive to air quality. For more than a century, scientists have used lichens to track pollution

Fri, 23 Jan, 2026

A bus that goes where you ask it to — service being piloted in Limerick, Kerry, and Mayo

A bus that goes where you ask it to — service being piloted in Limerick, Kerry, and Mayo

On-demand shuttle buses and safer cycling show promise, but a cultural shift and investment are still needed

Thu, 22 Jan, 2026

Summing up our swan squad successes

Summing up our swan squad successes

The whooper swan is thriving which is certainly something to celebrate and support

Wed, 21 Jan, 2026

A week-long hike, a three-day hike, or a day out — the Kerry Way has it all

S A week-long hike, a three-day hike, or a day out — the Kerry Way has it all

The 210 kilometre Kerry Way has numerous routes featuring dramatic peaks and windswept loughs, while encountering hidden glens, wild moorlands, and magnificent coastal vistas

Sun, 18 Jan, 2026

Birds of Ireland: Blackcap

Birds of Ireland: Blackcap

A blackcap, which is about the size of a robin, can be very aggressive at a bird table

Sat, 17 Jan, 2026

Mountain stream flows through granite boulders in Glenmacnass valley, County Wicklow, Ireland

The invisible carbon in Ireland’s waters

Dissolved organic carbon may be one of the most underestimated pressures on Irish waters. About 20% of our land area is covered by peat and peaty soils, which are among the most carbon-rich ecosystems on Earth. That makes Ireland uniquely vulnerable to large losses of carbon from land to water

Fri, 16 Jan, 2026

Five Monk Parakeets on a garden fountain in a Santiago garden

'Testing the waters’ when forming new relationships

Monk parakeets don’t rush into friendships. They gradually escalate interactions, starting from safe, low-risk behaviours and moving toward more intimate acts only when trust is established

Thu, 15 Jan, 2026

Wasteful and dangerous to dump batteries and electronics

Wasteful and dangerous to dump batteries and electronics

Lithium is now used in many batteries, especially the rechargeable ones. But a damaged lithium battery can catch fire, or explode, without warning — so for safety reasons, people are asked not to put batteries into general bins, skips, or street bins

Thu, 15 Jan, 2026

Winter weather Jan 8th 2026

Iridescent kingfishers need clear rivers — can we help?

We need to rethink our disregard for water quality, and to get busy restoring Ireland’s rivers to good health

Wed, 14 Jan, 2026