Fancy a walk on the wild side? Why not? Kerry, A Natural History is about to be published by the Collins Press in Cork. The official launch will take place today in Kerry.
Anyone with any interest in the natural world will want to have it. Terry Carruthers, who has worked as a park ranger in Killarney National Park since 1981, is the author. His credentials are almost as impressive as the book.
A member of the Irish Brent goose expeditions to Canada in 1984 and 1986, he is a well-known lecturer, both at home and abroad. He is the senior author of Birds of Killarney National Park (OPW, 1993), and has a keen interest in archaeology. The latest book is a must if this kind of thing interests you. There are wonderful animals to be seen at night all over Kerry and Terry knows exactly where to find them.
Publishers, of course, must market their wares and blurbs never do down what they're selling. However, the advance material surrounding this book, for people who know the territory, doesn't make any false claims - there's no doubt that this book will also have a tangible educational value.
Kerry covers an area of some 5,000 square kilometres. It is Ireland's premier visitor destination, mainly due to its scenery. Less well known is the county's attraction for naturalists, ecologists, geologists and people interested in natural history.
Due to its broad mix of habitats, important sea bird islands, sand dunes, Ireland's highest mountains and largest surviving native woodlands, plus diverse flora and fauna, Kerry has an immense amount going for it.
It is a did-you-know county. For instance, it has the only chalk in Ireland outside of Co Antrim. And, Lord be praised, it once had a hot, dry climate with lots of volcanic activity.
Europe's tallest ferns are to be found in abundance around south Kerry and it is the only county which has all the Irish species of insect-eating plants.
The fact that Japanese Sika deer, which now thrive in Kerry, find goose droppings a delicacy is the type of information you'll find here. Or that the county is the main location in Ireland for birds such as the storm petrel and the ring ouzel.
Terry Carruthers had a good subject with which to work. Kerry's rich diversity of flora and fauna, and all its lush natural life, were there to be explored. But what about night treks on the wild side - what does he see?
Given the right discretion and silence among his party, coupled with sensitivity to their surroundings, the Sika deer as well as other native species sometimes can be seen. The skill is to drive a four-wheel jeep along the pathways, its lights blazing. This attracts the animals, including badgers, foxes, the barn owl and the long-eared owl. Then it's time to alight, quietly, and get nearer. It takes a skilled guide to make this happen. Terry Carruthers is one. Now his book will attract a larger audience to all he's seen and heard down the years in Co Kerry.