Heritage & Habitat | The Irish Times

The newest choice of botanicals for gin is the seaweeds of the shore, such as the traditional Irish dillisk, carrigeen and sloke. Illustration: Michael Viney

Juniper joined by new botanical recruits in Irish gin revolution

Seaweeds are among the newest botanical options for small-scale gin distillers

Illustration: Michael Viney

Curlew’s call now so rare it brings tears to an old farmer’s eyes

New and energetic habitat protection and predator control may give the bird a future

Burnet rose - a flower of the Burren’s ‘unintended garden’. Illustration: Michael Viney

Michael Viney’s choice of nature books for Christmas

From the definitive Burren book, to a pine marten celebration and a study of the Liffey

Illustration: Michael Viney

Tussles for mussels: A species under threat in the Doo Lough valley

The historical threat of the pearl trade has been overtaken by fertiliser pollution and silt

November sunset: a new report says small families with long-lived members, contributing well into old age as workers and caregivers, should be the international goal. Illustration: Michael Viney

Shrinking populations should be welcomed by economists

Human beings and their livestock now account for 96% of mammals on the planet

Illustration: Michael Viney

Great tits: What a study tells us about their personalities

Shy males are less devoted to forming a strong pair bond with a single female

Illustration: Michael Viney

The rat that chewed in from the cold, right through the wall

We live in a maze for rodent adventurers, lured in by food aromas and warmth

The estimated 13 million rabbits in Ireland cost the economy some €55 million annually. Illustration: Michael Viney

Michael Viney: Ireland paying high price for invasive species

Introduced species now cost the Republic €200 million a year in damage and control

Stranded baby grey seal. Painting: Michael Viney

Seals and struggle: the changing fortunes of Ireland’s offshore islands

It’s feared that the western islands could come to be peopled only in brighter months

Illustration: Michael Viney

No country for cows and badgers: Ireland’s bovine TB problem

Farm patterns, ecology and geography may make Ireland a paradise for the pathogen

Ilustration: Michael Viney

Crayfish plague: no wonder the Irish species is white-clawed

A deadly American import is threatening the final extinction of the white-clawed crayfish

Greenland barnacle geese wintering on Inishkea. Illustration: Michael Viney

Flying form: Ireland’s fantastic feathered immigrants

In a rich roster of species that come to feed or breed are birds of awesome endeavour

East Atlantic bluefin tuna have survived extreme overfishing.

‘King of all fish’ remains safe from Irish anglers

EU extremely unlikely to allow recreational fishing of bluefin tuna, Minister tells anglers

Pike: Illustration: Michael Viney.

Pike no longer deemed to be the unacceptable foe

Arrival of the alien, red-eyed roach changed fish life in Ireland’s lakes and rivers

It is, after all, the wind that swings sheep the right way in fields.

In a time of climate change, will the wind continue to howl?

The magnificent and frightening energy of a gale in full force is something to behold

More than 70 different forms of dandelion have been recorded so far in Co Dublin alone.

Dandelions a marvel of exquisite engineering

Mechanisms enable common weed to maximise light and direct water to roots

Illustration: Michael Viney

The Kerry slug trail leads all the way from Spain

Genetic research on the Kerry slug has found strong links with those in Spain and Portugal

Atlantic rain by Michael Viney

Where does rain, having fallen, actually go?

Michael Viney: We need to tap into our groundwater resource

Dearg-a-daol, devil’s coach horse.

From pond whirligigs to tooth-nosed snout weevils – it’s a busy beetle hunt

Michael Viney: Look out for orange harlequin ladybird – it’s pretty but it’s a pest

Edible crab: Illustration: Michael Viney.

Moulting periods and the constant process of renewal

Another Life: The process of physical repair, of growing on, extends to most forms of animal life

Bees nest

Eye on Nature: Your notes and queries for Ethna Viney

Harvestman spiders in Galway, a dragonfly in Leitrim and a stoat in Co Clare

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