Heritage & Habitat | The Irish Times

The shiny black backs that came curving along the waves behind me were those of bottlenose dolphins, out for their own kind of fun. Picture: Michael Viney

On a frosty morning 40 years ago, I saw a group of dolphins playing tag

As top marine predators, dolphins accumulate the most man-made toxic pollutants

“Without warmth released from the Gulf Stream in the north Atlantic, our winters could be about 5 degrees C colder and the storms could get even fiercer.”

Michael Viney: Climate change an existential threat to civilisation, scientists say

Global warming presents potentially damaging cascades of impacts, new study finds

Question 20: Which alien mammal climbs trees in rural Cork?

Michael Viney’s Christmas quiz: Test your nature knowledge

Fifty brain teasers on all things natural from sealife to flora and what tofu is made of

‘In my bicycling years, I once took a few weeks to trundle right around Ireland.’

All change on our once bustling highways and byways

Local communities challenged to make the best of what is a dense weave of waysides

Most of Ireland’s uplands are farmlands and wetlands with “high natural value”.

Michael Viney: These hills are made for walking

Study says hill farmers should supplement income by developing recreational activities

If an island is lucky there’s a flock of choughs, the red-billed crows of Ireland’s western seaboard. Illustration: Michael Viney

Ireland’s choughs: a prime and precious Wild Atlantic Way attraction

Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax (so good they named it twice) is one of the rarer birds of western Europe

The otter, Lutra lutra, is now the symbolic animal used by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Illustration: Michael Viney

Monitoring the otter, Ireland’s elusive, enigmatic river-dweller

Mammologists at University College Cork are leading an extensive study of the urban otter

The innocence of early writing about Irish nature gave way to centuries of dramatic change, from druidic worship of the ancient forest to modern, ecological passion and alarm. Picture: Michael Viney

Distinctive history of nature literature compiled in insightful anthology

Woven Shades of Green is a ‘a generous treasury of Irish nature poetry and prose’

Rarest of all the Dooaghtry snails is the sand-bowl amber snail or Quickella arenaria

The machair at Dooaghtry is teeming with rare and precious organisms

A soft day in late spring finds them copulating everywhere in the dunes

Not until the spread of light bulbs 150 years ago did bright light seriously disrupt the boundaries of night and day. Illustration: Michael Viney

Dim the lights: Our world without darkness is an unnatural disaster

Michael Viney: The nocturnal dazzle of the western world is upsetting the natural order

Robin in the polytunnel. Illustration: Michael Viney

Michael Viney: Faithful robin’s subdued song an autumnal delight

The feeding of so many different species of birds has become ecologically important

A dearg-a-daol. Drawing by Michael Viney

How the dearg-a-daol became Ireland’s most feared beetle

The beetle’s reputation comes from both folklore and its threatening posture

‘With Lorenzo at full tilt or not, its kind seems sure to proliferate as a warming Atlantic draws hurricanes north.’ Picture: Michael Viney

Autumn gives Connacht a thrilling beauty making regular storms endurable

Before double glazing we watched gusts bowing the windows - now we get out candles and Scrabble and enjoy what’s left of the wine

Clare Island cliffs. Illustration: Michael Viney

Spot the difference: how Clare Island has changed in 100 years

Clare Island’s increasingly rainy climate offers special rewards to scientific fieldwork

Viney drawing for September 28 - wasp on windfall apple. Illustration: Michael Viney

‘They ruin picnics’: Our feelings about wasps will need reform

We may not like then as much as bees, but without wasps, we could be ‘overrun with spiders’

According to the department’s estimate, the A2 rating will add 1.9 per cent to the overall cost compared to A3. Photograph: Rui Vieira/PA Wire

Q&A: Will new energy efficiency regulations end up costing me more?

From November, new houses will have to comply to a near-zero energy efficiency

Rare moss at the Allihies mine in west Cork. Illustration: Michael Viney

Ireland’s habitat survey lays the groundwork for better conservation

Digging below the surface of our 58 habitats, it’s clear some are thriving better than others

Cep or penny bun, Boletus edulis. Illustration: Michael Viney

When mushroom picking, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing

There are old mushroom hunters and bold mushroom hunters but no old, bold ones

Swan lake – where the gossamer gleamed.

How ballooning spiders fly through the sky

Certain species can use gossamer threads and planet’s electrical field to take flight

Scoter sea ducks. Illustration: Michael Viney

Decline in numbers of wintering waterbirds continues apace

Latest survey of almost 700 key wetlands offers fascinating insights into the changing world of migrant wildfowl and shorebirds

A honeybee at hollyhock. Photograph: Michael Viney

Beehives in Dublin city will need expert management

A swarm of bees is remarkably docile – it’s focused on the queen and not rushing to sting anyone

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