Panel: Éanna Ní Lamhna, Richard Collins & Niall Hatch

Reporter: Terry Flanagan

In addition to listening to Mooney Goes Wild on RTÉ Radio One at 22:00 every Monday night, don't forget that you can also listen back to each of our programmes any time you like at www.rte.ie/mooney. There, you will find an extensive archive of past broadcasts, conveniently split into different topics and segments.

This week, our suggestion from the archives is a programme that we first broadcast back in June of this year, entitled What Makes a Bird? We tend to talk a lot about birds on Mooney Goes Wild, and for good reason: they are the most visible animals in our environment, they represent the pinnacles of their food chains, making them crucial indicators of the health of our environment, and they are undeniably both beautiful and captivating. Take a walk or a drive, or simply look out of your kitchen window, and it will not be long before you spot a bird of some kind.

But just what is it that makes a bird a bird, setting them apart from all other living creatures on Earth? In this special edition of the programme, our esteemed panellists – Richard Collins, Éanna Ní Lamhna, Terry Flanagan, Eric Dempsey and Niall Hatch – shine a spotlight on the defining features of our feathered friends.

You can listen back to this programme from the archives at https://www.rte.ie/radio/radio1/clips/22111360/

National Tree Day: a recap

On last week’s programme, we featured a segment on National Tree Day, which took place on 6th October. The theme this year was 'Root for Nature’, or ‘Tacaigh le nádúr’, which has a double meaning. People were asked to get involved in helping the environment, but also to learn about the complex root system under a tree.

On tonight’s programme, Éanna, who just happens to be the President of the Tree Council of Ireland, tells us how the big day went, as well as how schools across the country can still claim their free Holly tree saplings.

For more information about National Tree Day and for details of how schools can request a free Holly tree, visit https://www.treeday.ie/

To Return to my Trees

There is a phrase in the Welsh language – dod yn ôl at fy nghoed – which means "to return to a balanced state of mind". The literal translation is, quite beautifully, "to return to my trees".

In the spring of 2020, struggling with anxiety, a career crisis and, the icing on the cake, Covid lockdown, Welsh writer and editor Matthew Yeomans found solace, as so many of us did, walking in local parks and woodlands, reconnecting with nature. Inspired by Wales’ plan to create a National Forest Trail, he decided to carve his own National Trail, and embarked on an epic 300-mile walk through his nation’s ancient woodlands.

Matthew’s story is told in his new book, entitled "To Return to my Trees", which has variously been called "an inspiring story about one man’s determination", a "joyous journey" and "a beautiful, gentle adventure." He joins us on tonight’s programme to talk about the inspiration for his journey, the insights he experienced along the way and the fundamental importance of immersion in nature, from which so many of us in this fast-paced, modern world have become divorced.

Return to My Trees by Matthew Yeomans is published by Calon Books and is available at www.returntomytrees.uk

Mini-boats: is this the best school science project ever?

Many of us will remember rudimentary science experiments from our time in primary school. Demonstrations on becoming a human sundial, perhaps, or on turning an empty bottle into a rain gauge . . . or maybe you had the pleasure of cleaning old coins with Coca Cola.

Well, thankfully, things have moved on. For example, a new mini-boat programme is currently connecting young students across the world by way of oceanic science. Small unmanned craft are being deployed in the Atlantic Ocean, allowing primary school pupils to track the progress of their own vessels, along with those of others involved in the project. As a result, they learn about ocean currents, weather and technology.

Schools in Germany, Spain and South Africa are involved . . . along with Lackagh National School in Co. Galway. On tonight’s programme, we are joined by Bláithín McGrath, a 5th class student at the school, and Sheena Fennell, Senior Oceanography Technician at the University of Galway. Together, they tell us more about this remarkable and innovative pelagic experiment.

For more information about the Lackagh National School mini-boat project, visit https://connachttribune.ie/lackagh-students-mini-boat-sets-sail-in-the-south-atlantic/

Hidden forces in the deep

"The Earth’s climate system is so complex that it is possible for a seemingly tiny change to result in a relatively sudden and often drastic response." So claims Dr. Andrew Keane of University College Cork’s School of Mathematical Sciences and Environmental Research Institute.

Andrew is co-author of a new study which uncovers a hidden force governing the survival of deep-sea life. On tonight’s programme, he explains how ocean biodiversity is dependent on a strong circulation system. In a nutshell, water near the ocean’s surface moves towards the poles, where it becomes cold and dense. When this dense water sinks, it brings with it oxygen from the atmosphere to the ocean floor. This oxygen is vital for the survival of deep-sea creatures.

In a similar way, nutrients from deep beneath the ocean’s surface feed plankton, which support the extraordinary biodiversity of our planet’s marine life. But it is not sea-life alone that is affected by oceanic changes. Studies show that a shift in the Atlantic Ocean circulation would change life as we know it. Western Europe would become drastically colder, leading to a significant rise in sea levels along the eastern shore of North America. Have we already reached the tipping point?

For more information about the risk to deep-sea life from shifts in oceanic circulation, visit https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-40957379.html