Winter Talks

Cabragh Wetlands series of Winter Talks gets underway this coming Wednesday (22^nd October) at 8.00pm with a talk by Catherine Keena on 'Farming and Wildlife'. Catherine works for Teagasc and is based at Kildalton, Co. Kilkenny. She is a well-known figure in environmental circles, speaking frequently to a variety of audiences and leading field trips and walks to show both farmers and the public a better way forward for environmental management. Her speciality is in Countryside Management, and only this week she has been involved in the Teagasc Biodiversity Demonstration in Bansha, focusing on native trees and hedgerows.

This talk should be of real interest to the general public and of great importance for those who are involved in land management, be it of a substantial farm or just your own garden. While the news is dominated by banking crashes and credit crunches, such stories as the report last week that up to a quarter of mammal species are threatened with extinction are largely ignored by the media, pushed to the middle pages and unnoticed by the bulk of the public. Which will seem the more important to our grandchildren – bloated bonuses to bankers, a drop in house prices and government bale-outs of banks, or the loss of habitats, destruction of biodiversity, and the reduction and elimination of a great range of our fellow species? We all need to look at what we can do at a local level to improve wildlife habitats.

So please come along to the Cabragh Wetlands next Wednesday evening, at 8.00 pm to hear about Farming and Wildlife, with, we hope, an emphasis on wetland management. We are privileged to have Catherine speak to us and we all have much to learn about best practice in managing the small pieces of the earth for which we take responsibility. Entry is free.

Cabragh Wetlands Winter Talks will continue in November with a double bill of particular interest to bird watchers. We are holding a joint event with the Tipperary branch of Bidwatch Ireland on Sunday 16^th November, when Kevin Collins will talk at 3.00 pm on the Winter Birds of the Cabragh Wetlands, followed by an evening Starling Watch (weather permitting). On Wednesday 26^th November local teacher and naturalist Tom Gallagher will give a talk at 8.00pm on 'Garden Birds, their Song, Folklore and how to attract them'. Make a note in your diaries.