Wildlife Ireland Learning & Discovery - WILD

Wildlife Ireland Learning & Discovery - WILD Local wildlife and nature educational content for parents, children and anyone with an interest (Baba Dioum)

Now, more than ever, it is imperative we all do what we can to conserve the natural world around us. As a mother and a veterinarian with a masters degree in wildlife health and conservation; I want to do my bit in supporting our natural environment. Via social media pages and local outreach, I aim to provide educational content and information. I’m starting on a journey with my two children to lea

rn, discover and share as much as we can- hope you can join us. Ann Haigh and Family

“In the end we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand; and we will understand only what we are taught."

I just think this fly is the most fascinating looking thing. Discovered while sweeping our lawn with a net and tipping t...
15/08/2026

I just think this fly is the most fascinating looking thing.
Discovered while sweeping our lawn with a net and tipping the contents into a tray to look for bugs etc. Even though they were tiny, only around 4mm in size, the markings on the wings made me look closer. They are called Trupanea stellata with various common names such as the Stellate Picturewing and the Star-winged Ragwort Fly. They lay eggs on the flower heads of plants in the Daisy family, which includes chamomiles and ragworts, on which their larvae then feed.
The patterns on the wings are believed to serve a few purposes. One is to deter predators by mimicking other insects. When the fly rests on a leaf and moves their wings it can appear like there are multiple insects present which confuses predators. You can really see that here as the markings definitely look like tiny mites or spiders 🤯.
🐝📷

Autumnal colours are already here in the form of the moth life in the garden. This morning presented a bordered beauty (...
15/08/2026

Autumnal colours are already here in the form of the moth life in the garden.
This morning presented a bordered beauty (Epione repandaria). These moths are on the wing from July to September. After mating, females will lay eggs on their caterpillars’ food plants, such as willows, alder, hazel and black-poplar. The eggs overwinter and hatch in the spring.

I got in the sea again 🏊‍♀️.Steering clear of those stinging tentacles, I managed to get these shots of a compass jellyf...
08/08/2026

I got in the sea again 🏊‍♀️.
Steering clear of those stinging tentacles, I managed to get these shots of a compass jellyfish. If you look closely you can see a small fish among their tentacles 👀.
Compass jellyfish do snare small fish for dinner, but juvenile fish have also been known to use the stinging tentacles to their advantage- as a safe place to hang out!as their predators steer clear 🪼.

A fabulous little common blue butterfly (Polyommatus icarus) from the garden today. What a stunner! 🦋 🦋
07/08/2026

A fabulous little common blue butterfly (Polyommatus icarus) from the garden today. What a stunner! 🦋
🦋

02/08/2026

Just take moment to enjoy some of the life from our garden ❤️.

Buff-tip moth caterpillars in the garden. Scroll the see the eggs they emerged from and what the adult moth looks like. ...
26/07/2026

Buff-tip moth caterpillars in the garden. Scroll the see the eggs they emerged from and what the adult moth looks like. The last photo is one moth and three twigs! How well they are camouflaged 🤯.

26/07/2026

A very striking beetle indeed 😍.
If you’re local, the Actions for Nature team are in Skibbereen library this Tuesday 28th July 6.30pm- come along to learn more and contribute to the biodiversity action plan!

20/07/2026

A really bright yellow species for Skibbereen species number 25!
Have you seen a clouded yellow butterfly yet this year? They are very special visitors to Ireland.

I completely over heated earlier today so when the boys suggested going sea swimming this evening, I said “ok, and you k...
11/07/2026

I completely over heated earlier today so when the boys suggested going sea swimming this evening, I said “ok, and you know what, I’m coming in too”. That NEVER happens.
As you know I’m not a stranger to rockpooling or wading around in wellies, but sea swimming, no 🥶.
Anyway, I went in with the snorkel mask we bought for the Red Sea (yeeeeearrrsss ago now). I regretted every single second of it, until I got out and said:
“that was quite nice”.

It may be another few years before I go in again- so here’s a blue jellyfish we spotted. A different photographic experience for me, floating with my snorkel mask and face quite close to their tentacles. They do sting, so I was cautious. Amazing to watch them swim and how their colours looked different as the light hit them in different angles.

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