Mushroom season: On the hunt in Wicklow for the most striking fungi of them all
The mushroom’s striking silhouette resembles a classic toadstool from a children’s story
National Parks and Wildlife Service
National Parks and Wildlife Service ‘will consider’ buying land beside Glen of the Downs
Noonan warns purchase price would represent ‘some of the most expensive land in the country’
Restoring the Wicklow hills: ‘It’s like the Sahara at times up there with peat moving around like sand dunes in the desert’
Degradation of upland habitats has led to reduced grazing potential, decline of vegetation and the loss of iconic birds such as the curlew and skylarks
Ospreys released into the wild with hopes for native population after 200-year gap
Fish-eating birds of prey generally migrate to Africa for winter months
Number of corncrake territories reaches highest level in 25 years
Farmers and landowners helping to increase numbers in core breeding areas across Donegal, Mayo and Galway
Lough Carra: Multi-million euro project aims to improve lake’s water quality and raise conservation status
A €5m project would improve the conservation status of the orchid-rich grasslands, limestone pavements and cladium fens
White-tailed sea eagle chicks to take flight in Killarney National Park
Four young birds were brought from Norway and have been acclimatising in Kerry before their release in a reintroduction programme
We need wind farms and we need eagles. And we need a planning system that accommodates both
We cannot afford to be pro-species conservation only when it suits other purposes
Protection area could mean brighter future for puffins on Saltee Islands
Population numbers have begun to rise after years of decline
Keep your distance: Saltee islands seabirds feel the effects of human intrusion on their habitat
The islands off Wexford’s coast attracting droves of summer visitors but this could be putting puffin and gannet populations under strain
How farmers are embracing environment restoration: ‘I kind of live for the corncrake’
Thousands of people and several communities throughout the country are already involved in a range of EU-funded restoration programmes
Parrots, budgies, finches among 121 birds rescued from ‘deplorable’ conditions
The multi-agency operation involved the ISPCA, An Garda Síochána, the HSE, and the National Parks and Wildlife Service
Woodpeckers breeding in Killarney National Park for first time in centuries
Great spotted woodpecker chicks found in Co Kerry woodland after walkers reported bird’s distinctive hammering sound
Twelve ‘critically endangered’ curlew chicks hatch at Fota Wildlife Park
More Eurasian curlews expected to hatch in coming weeks as part of a conservation initiative
Like ‘something from a snuff film’: touring wildlife crime scenes around Dublin with a parks ranger
Investigator Kieran Buckley says the National Parks and Wildlife Service has grown in size and activity but it needs more powers to tackle the scale of wildlife crime
This couple lived on Great Blasket with no electricity or running water. Here’s what they did next
As caretakers on the epic Kerry island for six months, Emily Campbell and Daniel Regan were taken by the simple life, and found it hard to adjust back to city living
Numbers of ‘oiled seabirds’ rises as source of pollution remains a mystery
Guillemots and razorbills worst affected by oil as State and NGOs scramble to save birds
What’s behind tree vandalism? ‘People really do feel the loss of these trees very, very deeply’
What prompts a small minority of people to wantonly damage our natural and built heritage, and how can we stop them?
Conor Pass bought by State for ‘less than €6m’, paving way for Ireland’s first marine national park
Details of Co Kerry amenity announced in Dingle to coincide with Earth Day
Flooding at Lough Funshinagh forces road closures and home evacuations
Roscommon County Council said the R362 at Coolnageer would close from Friday for ‘minimum period necessary’
Builder must pay €15,000 in charitable donations for ‘entombing’ badgers on west Dublin site
Covering badger sett with tree trunks and tonnes of soil ‘most wilful, cruel act that I’ve ever witnessed in 20 years’, wildlife officer tells court
Corncrakes and bats to benefit from biodiversity grants
Funding for community groups will create ‘pocket forests’ in Crumlin and tackle Japanese knotweed in Leitrim
Tracking the cuckoo’s arduous African journey, to the Congo and back
National Parks and Wildlife Service is jointly running project to find out why Ireland’s cuckoo population has decreased so much in past two decades
The Irish bog is under attack from rule-flouting dairy farming
The damage to Raheenmore in Co Offaly from ammonia pollution is a warning sign of what might be ahead
Best way to fight biodiversity loss is with a change of mindset
If our loved ones were suffering ill-health, at risk of collapse, we’d do everything in our power to help them recover. We need to do the same for the rest of life on Earth
Future of hen harrier in doubt as survey shows alarming decline in numbers
Under 100 hen harrier breeding pairs left in State, survey finds
Eamon Ryan: What we need today is a much bigger State
View that we are living in a failed State only serves a nihilistic creed
Revised national biodiversity plan backed by new powers to protect and restore declining nature across Ireland
All public bodies now legally required to integrate biodiversity into plans and policies
Biodiversity action plan Q&A: How bad is Irish nature loss and can we turn the tide?
Every species category of Irish native plant and animal is under threat, and too many of our freshwater bodies are tainted by pollution
Ireland’s largest protected area for birds to be created along Co Wexford coast
National Parks and Wildlife Service says move ‘another determined step’ by Ireland to protect marine birdlife
State nears deal for Conor Pass in Co Kerry
The parties are working on the basis the property will be taken into ownership of the National Parks and Wildlife Service to be developed and managed for tourism
Convictions for wildlife crime include badger digging, disturbance of bats and hare lurching
Minister Malcolm Noonan said ‘citizen reporting’ was ‘essential’ in safeguarding nature
Lough Corrib’s hidden diversity in desperate need of co-ordinated protection
Ireland’s second largest lake suffering from being ‘out of sight, out of mind’
Operator of Carton House in Co Kildare convicted and fined for damaging local ‘ecosystem’
Company fined €8,000 after pleading guilty to offences relating to clearing of vegetation at upmarket hotel
Our National Parks say something about how we view and value the natural world
Agriculture will be at the centre of Ireland’s newest National Park, Boyne Valley National Park, to be created from the 552-acre Dowth Hall estate
More than €2bn from budget has yet to be allocated for spending next year
Budget 2024: State water company Uisce Éireann will get €1.6bn next year for the operation, repair and upgrading of the Republic’s supply networks
New climate fund is arguably the single most important element of Budget 2024 and a historic first
Budget 2024 includes measure to scale up green transition of economy
Two parties interested in sale of land on Conor Pass in Co Kerry
Taoiseach said Government is interested in buying scenic site but would not pay €10m asking price for the lands, woods and lakes
Hunting of four duck species outlawed as conservationists seek further bans
Scaup, Goldeneye, Pochard and Pintail duck species ruled off-limits to hunters but BirdWatch Ireland wants the Shoveler and Golden Plover protected too
White-tailed eagles spread their wings with 24 new chicks released into Irish skies
The chicks were released in locations around Lough Derg, the Shannon Estuary and the west of Ireland.
Give Me a Crash Course in . . . the return of the corncrake
A tentative rise in numbers and a geographical spread are positive signs conservation efforts are paying off
Corncrake numbers rising in Ireland
Endangered bird spotted on the Aran Islands for the first time in more than 25 years
Warning over ‘high-impact’ invasive species on Killarney lakes
Fringed water lily was thought to have been eradicated in the area but has spread with vigour this year
Early departure of puffins after nesting on Skellig Michael leaves experts confused
Uncertainty surrounds departure but ‘favourable’ breeding season recorded
Ireland’s largest protected area for bird species to be created in Irish Sea
North-West Irish Sea SPA to stretch along coasts of counties Dublin, Meath and Louth and become Ireland’s largest protected area for bird species
Otters: Scientists on trail of the elusive and charismatic mammal
Water analysis and a new technique called eDNA will help us work out how many otters live in Ireland
Authorities monitoring ‘worrying’ outbreak of crayfish plague in Co Cork
Total kill of crayfish population expected in the Blackwater River (Cork/Waterford) Special Area of Conservation
Habitats directive: Gross policy failure leaves Ireland’s most prized natural possessions at risk
Analysis: European Court’s finding on our failure to implement habitats directive an indication of gross policy failure
‘A damning indictment’: European court finds Ireland failed to implement EU habitats directive
Decision ‘a damning indictment of Ireland’s failure to protect nature’, IWT says
State wildlife agency to play ‘stronger role in protecting nature’
Six new directorates put in place with staff increased to 471 – progress report confirms
Dublin hare-port: the oldest mammal in Ireland is in flying form
The numbers of hares at Dublin Airport are about 10 times the average
Climate change and invasive species: ‘The clock is ticking as to when something nasty will arrive’
Scientists warn climate change will increase chances of dangerous species arriving in Ireland and threatening food crops if borders are not protected
The common cuckoo is not so common any more
The bird, though heartless and cunning, is still one of the great joys of approaching summer
Cuckoo tagging project could solve one of Ireland’s ‘most intriguing natural mysteries’
A joint Irish-UK scheme will track exactly where they go when the birds go when they depart Ireland in mid-summer
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