A highlight for me this year was the launch of @rewildyourland.bsky.social and I met dozens of people across Ireland who are already enjoying the thrill of rewilding. There are more plans in the pipeline so here's hoping that 2026 will see rewilding go from strength to strength in Ireland!

Small acorns ✅️ Mighty oaks 🔳 Massive woodlands 🔳

"I wouldn't consider what I do work..." through gritted teeth

Y'day was our last visit to coill Gleann dá loch for 2025 which we wrapped up nicely with a few well earned pints and meal 2025 in summary: 2.7ha of Rhodo cleared (6.67 acres) over 12 days with an average of 7 volunteers each outing. Not to mention our follow up work at two other local sites (1/2)

Excited to be speaking at #BES2025 next week on my PhD research also just ACCEPTED FOR PUBLICATION: "Thinking outside the bog: planting Dwarf Birch for mountain woodland restoration beyond habitat refugia constrained by overgrazing" Implications for practice, policy & deer management. @stir.ac.uk

New OA 🦇 research 📄 studying the wonders of #bat #migration To Migrate or not to Migrate? Exploring the Genomic Basis of Partial Migratory Behavior in Bats academic.oup.com/gbe/article/...

Christmas is just around the corner if you were wondering what to get me!

Great to attend and have a chance to present an update on project at Irish Entomologists’ Meeting in UCD earlier this week. Data starting to come in now, with hope to start sharing in new year #LoveIrishResearch @royentsoc.bsky.social @atu-ie.bsky.social @researchireland.ie

I give up someone cleverer than me knows why we need more plastic pollution at Horden Hawthorn and blackthorn planted where Hawthorne and blackthorns are naturally growing

In relation to an old post of mine there is a lichen I seen here and at least another couple of hyper-oceanic situations elsewhere (where the bryoflora is particularly nice) which I would like to identify. Anyone familiar with the species? Always on rock and quartzite usually @averisben.bsky.social

This, by @giacgrassi.bsky.social, remains one of the simplest and best climate visuals

Missed the outing as out of action but the team marches on against Conamara rhodo!

Great turnout for our monthly outing today, and nice to see some new faces! @hetzgonnabeme.bsky.social @timoceallaigh.bsky.social @cianoceallaigh.bsky.social @david-smyth-eco.bsky.social

Some had difficulties with the link of my previous post. Here is the full link: besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... 🧪🌿🌎🦊 #wildlife #MovementEcology #uqar

PhD opportunity! Focusing on ecological processes offers an adaptive approach to conservation at a time of rapid environmental change But how do we measure & conserve these processes? This PhD will explore the use of species traits to assess ecosystem condition www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

I'm in a group chat at the moment trying to get a newborn baby to be named Troy

Fieldwork the last few days. This is a path normally. Lets hope the bats are ok!

Another successful Green Drinks tonight, with Ananda Geluk discussing Active Hope. Thanks to everyone who joined us!

@ramoneskaraoke.bsky.social I saw you post about a pippyg cover the other day Currently installing these to monitor roost activity- two offcuts, a microwave tub for eggs and cable ties. 🤞 it works

Reminder that our next #greendrinks is this Tuesday, November 11! Registration 👇🏽

Farming side by side with nature in an upland region of Teneriffe, although this type of farming is clearly on the decline. Curaíocht traidisiúnta i sléibhte Teneriffe. Cuireann sé i gcuimhne dhom sléibhte Conamara beagán, tá fiú raithneach ag fás sna áiteanna nach bhfuil curtha níos mó...

Tripod. Seems to be in good condition. Answers on a postcard as to what happened. @irishwoodlandtrust.bsky.social

Almost makes the hiking, rain and cold yesterday worth it. #SnapshotEurope @irishwoodlandtrust.bsky.social

Was very pleased to see alpine clubmoss today Diphasiastrum alpinum above líonán today in Conamara. Have been on look out for it all summer. Have only seen twice before (once in Scotland and once more in Conamara but I somehow lost the latter location since it was on a casual hike :/)

Snapshot Season in Conamara. Last fox has a snack

📢 New paper from my PhD! 🦇 Using 3D reconstructions of barbastelle bat flight paths over roads, we found that increasing canopy cover leads to lower flight heights, elevating collision risk. @vincentwt.bsky.social @sussex.ac.uk #PhD #Bats #Ecology #Conservation 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Gymnomitrion crenulatum from two different sites/days in the mám toirce. The red stuff is what I mostly see, and am happy to. The green stuff had me all excited it was something rare but nope still G. crenulatum. Apparently this colouration is uncommon

Trying my best to be a mountain man it seems. First round of camera checks done for a very haphazard #snapshoteurope

A lot of hard work goes into @rhodorangers.bsky.social work done by a lot of others! Licences, landowner liaison, scouting sites, best practice review, organising speakers etc Not to mention costs of travel, tools, insurance etc - all self funded atm! Please share and follow the page!

Now you see me.... Now you don't! A photo from a @rhodorangers.bsky.social day out from a while back And an opportunity to reintroduce ourselves... Please like and share! (1/6)

Happy Sunday everyone! Who is out and about enjoying the countryside? What Invasive Plant Species have you seen today?

@rhodorangers.bsky.social bluesky account still a bit small Follow for updates on invasive plant species management in West Galway, educational outreach, knowledge sharing and just general info to raise awareness of invasive plant species and their impact in Ireland's landscape!

📌 New publication out: Reference genome bias in light of species-specific chromosomal reorganization and translocations TL;DR - We show that the choice of reference genome biases the detection of structural variants and popgen stats. Navigate carefully - 🛳️ 😬 link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Brown rats are preying on bats at urban hibernation sites – even snatching them mid-air. Conservation efforts must include non-native rodent control at key bat roosts. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Another great turnout for this months Green Drinks event, cheers to all who joined us! @david-smyth-eco.bsky.social @cianoceallaigh.bsky.social @bkollmann.bsky.social @stevil-weevil.bsky.social

VENUE CHANGE ! We've had to change the location for tomorrow's Green Drinks to the Dew Drop Inn (upstairs).

Controlling a tree invader for coastal plant communities' restoration affected below-ground dynamics 🌱🌏🧪 We used coastal vegetation on sandy soils in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest as a model to investigate below-ground dynamics in communities under restoration 🌀 Read more: buff.ly/sYUu8fk

Great weekend clearing rhododendron from coill gleann dá loch again. Lots of progress made with another 1.7 acres cleared. Thanks to everyone who came out @hetzgonnabeme.bsky.social @bkollmann.bsky.social @stevil-weevil.bsky.social @cianoceallaigh.bsky.social @rewildingire.bsky.social

Our "Guidelines for Rewilding" published with IUCN CEM are now live! portals.iucn.org/library/node...

Very happy to confirm this moss as Braunia imberbis growing on Gabbro in north Conamara. A new record for Galway and likely to be fairly abundant here. Thanks to Thomas Blockeel from the BBS for confirming. Speiceas nua go Conamara agus fiú Connacht

!!! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Oak living on the ledge at the southern end of Conamara national park today. At 335m, anyone else see oaks at this elevation here?

Traipsing the bogs of Conamara for Snapshot Galway! Year 3 of camera trapping set up - hoping the wind and rain didn't knock them out

Still interested in any expert confirming squirrel and not other rodent/mammal @irishwoodlandtrust.bsky.social

www.crainnte.ie Great website for anyone interested in Irish ecology and Irish language Seathrún has done a serious amount of work getting this complete!

Bioacoustics? Already finished it mate. (Praying this design works and all detectors come back safely)

A cost-of-living crisis isn't the easiest time to sell art, but: www.ciaraioch.com is where you can support my work, with each archival-quality print on textured heavy paper being produced here in Ireland, shipping internationally in eco-friendly packaging, with free mini-treats in every order 🎁

Would normally say its a squirrel seeing this in a woodland. BUT This is in an isolated woodland complex 20km away from nearest population of reds with treeless landscape between. Anybody able to shed some light?

Our new paper shows how a small Iberian stream, dry for 50 years, bounced back to good ecological status in <2 years after environmental flows were restored. 🌊🪱 👉 doi.org/10.1111/rec.70198 #RiverRestoration #EnvironmentalFlows #FreshwaterEcology

A long weekend of slow work digging up regrowth from old stumps and seedlings while getting stung by bees and drenched in the odd downpour at our first site in Corr Uí Mhongáin..... mostly done here but some giant rhubarb will eventually need seeing to