Ireland's Environmentalists Profile picture
Feb 8, 2023 10 tweets 6 min read Read on X
1/Hi all! This afternoon we look (selectively) at what pollen records, tell us about long term changes, from the end of the last Glaciation. How has climate, humans+related processes shaped the 🇮🇪 vegetation over thousands of years? (Nick Miller, From Cogan's Shed, 2004) Image
2/Difficult to summarise 1000s yrs in tweets! Image by Gill Plunkett @QUBelfast does good jobNB. highly generalised, much spatial variation across country; Key points: development of woodland as climate warms start of #Holocene hazel dominant, oak, elm, later alder, how dense? A pollen graph showing curv...
3/Closed canopy? But NB1 Concept of 'Climax' woodland largely discredited; : 'openess' is under-represented in #pollen records! NB2; #ClimateChange driving some changes; other processes inc. soil development. When does human activity impact? Now that's a good qu! A photograph of a woodland ...
4/Clearest evidence of woodland clearance c. 3800 BC, rises in herbs/grasses, falls in trees/shrubs. Much debated 'Elm Decline' around this time. Opening up of woodland by #Neolithic peoples; NB. Not 'slash+burn' in strictest definition! Image showing the herb ribw...
5/Stone axes effective tools to chop down trees! Other techs. prob 'ring barking', fire poss. used to clear drier scrub, burn dead vegetation to new growth. Most clearance restricted, small arable plots+pastoral, prob also driving changes in floral #Biodiversity
6/What did these #Neolithic landscapes look like? Hard to envisage, for some nice reconstructions of #archaeological sites in context, see philarm.com/category.aspx?…
7/It wasn't just humans driving changes in vegetation, soils etc., #Climate shifted through time across Ireland/nw Europe, although underlying processes are still debated. Link between vegetation/climate long suspected +formed basis for 'zonation' of #Holocene based on pollen Table showing Blytt Sernand...
8/The Irish landscape is product of millennia of complex, interacting processes, across different chronological/spatial scales. Where is the baseline for 'natural' vegetation? Do we mean 'pre-human' impact? When is that?
9/Mesolithic? As @AerialAndBugs points out, prob small scale impacts on vegetation then. Climate envelope also different. Post 'Sub-Boreal/Sub-Atlantic' (see 7)? Wetter/colder, but vegetation succession/soils already shaped by millennia of human activity!!
10/ ENOUGH ALREADY! We will return to such musings/implications for how we think of, and look to restore/conserve the Irish landscape later. For now I leave you with: The Mickey Mouse of pollen grains, Pinus sylvestris 😉😂 A pine pollen grain, which ...

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More from @IrelandsEnviro

Jun 9, 2023
Day 05 of @RhodoRangers here!

I nearly forgot to tweet - apologies

The topic today - How to square a circle?

Also known as Integrated Stakeholder Management and how you might eliminate 1 invasive species from 1 county!

Buckle up because I don't know where this will go!

1/n
We have 3 loose goals as aforementioned;

- Physical removal of Rhododendron
- Increase in public awareness of status and impacts
- Push for increased collaboration and integrated management at a county and national level!

2/n

We're constantly on the lookout for invaded spots, mapping and talking to people about rhodo sites to see if we can help!

This is all voluntary for all of us

3/n

Read 16 tweets
Jun 8, 2023
Day 04 of @RhodoRangers takeover

I was meant to talk about 2 topics today but will only be talking about Site Restoration post clearance as I counted days wrong and can dedicate another day to site wide county activity!

So you've started clearing your site - what's next?

1/n
Personally I favour hands off intervention but we can't always do this!

As you can see below, removal of rhododendron leaves a mark!

Some studies show diversity in some places is still impacted 30 years after clearance 😲

Have a look at this; hutton.ac.uk/news/native-pl…

2/n Cleared rhododendron site, ...
So where do we start?

Few simple Qs

1) What type of habitat do you have/should you have?
2) How much follow up work is there?
3) What are the future risks?

3/n Heath covered in shrub like...Two cut rhodo plants in upl...
Read 11 tweets
Jun 7, 2023
Day 03

@RhodoRangers here again

It's time to talk rhodo removal, how to, tips & tricks and more

⚠️WARNING⚠️
This is not a qualified list and we make no claims for Health and Safety - be careful out there & read rules/regulations/instructions
⚠️

Now that's out of the way

1/n
⚠️
Seriously on the Be Safe part though!
⚠️

Whats the easiest way to remove rhododendron?
A natural herbivore would be of course

Only one animal seems to eat Rhododendron, the Takin from Asia

Though I wonder what would wild boar do to areas of infestation 🤔

2/n Photo of a takin, a bulky g...
So natural grazing is out of question and its up to people to sort it!

1st step - The Plan

What type of infestation do you have? How much time & resources do you have? How sensitive is the area to disturbance limiting activity?

Simple Qs

3/n

Read 15 tweets
Jun 1, 2023
Thursday's topic: Wolves (and lynx) in Europe.

Terrors of the forest? Or necessary keystone species?

As with everything in ecology, nothing is simple! Today I (@AdamFSmith) will look at some myths, science, and interesting facts about these species. Claws out, let's go! 🐺

1/n Wolf and lynx confront one ...
Firstly, this is my immediate research area. Over the last 3 years I have been involved in numerous studies involving wolves and lynx, however the "speed of science" means few are published right now!

It is extremely complex, so over Twitter you'll have to bare with me!

2/n Adam wearing a wolf hat and...
Europe's legal protection and softening public opinion has successfully seen population and range rebounds for these species.

Both are listed as protected under the EU Habitat's Directive and cannot be hunted in EU countries! 🇪🇺

BUT...

3/n Maps of where wolves and ly...
Read 20 tweets
May 15, 2023
Hi everyone, Kez here, I'm really excited to chat with you all this week about my research & life as an Irish Ornithologist. I’ve been working in ornithology/ conservation for over nine years, first with @WWT, then PhD @QUBEcology & now working as a consultant ornithologist. 1/n
I’ve been ringing birds all across Ireland since 2014, & my main focus for ringing is raptors, waders & waterfowl, working with @nirsg and @brentgoosechase. My first love will always be the Light-bellied Brent Goose, but this week I plan to talk about my PhD research. 2/n Image
From geese to raptors is quite a jump, but it was important. Worldwide, raptors are beneficial across an entire range of ecosystem services, from regulating prey populations, providing cultural services… 3/n
Read 12 tweets
May 14, 2023
#NewProfilePic

A HUGE thank you to @DuhallowBlueDot and @BlueDotWaters for a GREAtT week

Make sure to follow their accounts to stay up to date!

Next up is @alethionaut, curating from May 15th! Image
Kez is an ornithologist, bird ringer, President of @CopelandBirdOb and the @_BTO Regional Rep for Co. Down. Kez completed her PhD researching the Common kestrel in Ireland from Queen’s University Belfast!
This week, @alethionaut will be talking about this amazing raptor, the Common Kestrel & its conservation issues in Ireland & how to get involved.
Read 4 tweets

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