Over 50 ecologists from throughout Ireland will flock to County Clare this Friday and Saturday to participate in the Dromore Woods Bioblitz 2011.
The competition sees ecologists competing to identify which national park can record the most species, from butterflies and birds to flowers and fungi, over a 24 hour period. The winner of last year’s event, Connemara National Park recorded a massive 542 species.
Again this year, five of Ireland’s state-owned properties will be vying for the BioBlitz perpetual trophy. From soaring eagles to the smallest bugs in the undergrowth, teams of scientists and volunteers will comb the parks recording what they find. Dromore Woods will be competing with Ballycroy National Park in Co Mayo, Killarney National Park in Co Kerry, Liffey Valley Park in Waterstown and Raven Wood Nature Reserve in Co Wexford.
Among the wide range of groups, organisations and institutions that will be represented in Dromore Woods is Clare County Council, National Parks and Wildlife Service, National Biodiversity Data Centre, Environmental Sciences Association of Ireland, National Parks and Wildlife Service, my kids time, NUIG and GMIT.
According to Shane Casey, Clare Biodiversity Officer: “Public events will be held over the two days including pond dipping, bat walks, plant identification, butterfly catching, kick sampling, dawn chorus walks, exploring traps and activity trails. Events are free and open to all, so come along and experience the biodiversity of Dromore Woods.”
Dromore Woods covers an area of approximately 400 hectares. It was a private estate until the 1940s before being taken over by the Forestry Division. It was worked as a commercial forest until 1985. The area then became a Nature Reserve because of the diversity and richness of its flora and fauna and wide variety of habitat types. These include species rich woodland, rivers, lakes, turloughs, callows, limestone pavement, fen peat and reed beds.
Dromore Woods Bioblitz 2011 takes place on Friday and Saturday, May 20th and 21st from 5pm to 5pm. For more visit www.bioblitz.biodiversityireland.ie
The competition sees ecologists competing to identify which national park can record the most species, from butterflies and birds to flowers and fungi, over a 24 hour period. The winner of last year’s event, Connemara National Park recorded a massive 542 species.
Again this year, five of Ireland’s state-owned properties will be vying for the BioBlitz perpetual trophy. From soaring eagles to the smallest bugs in the undergrowth, teams of scientists and volunteers will comb the parks recording what they find. Dromore Woods will be competing with Ballycroy National Park in Co Mayo, Killarney National Park in Co Kerry, Liffey Valley Park in Waterstown and Raven Wood Nature Reserve in Co Wexford.
Among the wide range of groups, organisations and institutions that will be represented in Dromore Woods is Clare County Council, National Parks and Wildlife Service, National Biodiversity Data Centre, Environmental Sciences Association of Ireland, National Parks and Wildlife Service, my kids time, NUIG and GMIT.
According to Shane Casey, Clare Biodiversity Officer: “Public events will be held over the two days including pond dipping, bat walks, plant identification, butterfly catching, kick sampling, dawn chorus walks, exploring traps and activity trails. Events are free and open to all, so come along and experience the biodiversity of Dromore Woods.”
Dromore Woods covers an area of approximately 400 hectares. It was a private estate until the 1940s before being taken over by the Forestry Division. It was worked as a commercial forest until 1985. The area then became a Nature Reserve because of the diversity and richness of its flora and fauna and wide variety of habitat types. These include species rich woodland, rivers, lakes, turloughs, callows, limestone pavement, fen peat and reed beds.
Dromore Woods Bioblitz 2011 takes place on Friday and Saturday, May 20th and 21st from 5pm to 5pm. For more visit www.bioblitz.biodiversityireland.ie
