Hidden Ulster Tours

15/08/2026

Part 8 of my never-ending series on Irish bogs!

This time I'm thinking about the bird life - songbirds, birds of prey and wading birds :)

Some of Ireland's most beautiful songbirds live in remote bog habitats. These include the skylark (Alauda arvensis) and meadow pipit (Anthus pratensis).

As there are few trees on bogs, the birds must nest on the ground in hummocks.

SKYLARKS mark their territory by singing rapturous songs as they ascend into the sky.

The RED GROUSE feeds on ling heather and has a very distinct 'go back, go back' call. Even if you do not see a red grouse, you may find clumps of its sausage-like droppings on the bog. Sadly, the red grouse is under threat because of habitat-loss through heather-burning, disturbance and predation.

BIRDS OF PREY

Bogs are a fantastic hunting ground for Ireland's birds of prey. The rare and protected HEN HARRIER makes its nest on the bog surface. They will hunt and feed on ground dwelling birds and mammals.

The MERLIN is Ireland's smallest bird of prey. They can often be seen chasing Meadow Pipits, their favourite prey.

The BUZZARD's call is a distinctive sound that can be heard overhead.

The PEREGRINE FALCON can fly at impressive speeds of up to 180mph as it swoops down to catch prey.

WADERS

The soft peaty soils of Ireland's bogs are ideal feeding grounds for waders. These birds can stick their long bills into the soft peat as they search for food.

The DRUMMING (Common) SNIPE is a ground-nesting bird of boglands. It builds its nest on tussocks, and when disturbed it flushes explosively from the vegetation, making a 'scratch'-like alarm call and flying away in a distinctive zig-zag pattern.

The sudden nature of this flushing behaviour can give unsuspecting visitors to bogs quite a shock as they walk across the bog surface.

Its long, straight sensitive beak is used to probe peaty soils and wet bog pools to feed on invertebrates, but it will also feed on seeds and other plant material.

As snipe are omnivorous, they can live in bogs year round. In summer, they enjoy a plentiful supply of invertebrates, and in autumn they feed on seeds.

Their plumage of dark brown, pale buff and black stripes and bars on the head and body provide good camouflage that helps protect them from predators, including the fox and birds of prey such as the buzzard and kestrel.

The snipe is also known as the 'bog bleater', as it can use its tail feathers to make a bleating or drumming sound when in flight, which is used to proclaim territory. It protrudes a feather on each side of its tail and flies in a rollercoaster pattern, causing the feathers to vibrate in the air and make this distinctive sound.

The CALLING CURLEW

The iconic call of the curlew (the ascending 'cur..lee, cur..lee' cry, and the 'cew, cew, cew' call) which was once a familiar sound on Ireland's bogs, is no longer common due to habitat destruction and predation of eggs and chicks by foxes and hooded crows.

Sadly, today the curlew is the most threatened bird in Ireland, with the National Parks and Wildlife Service recording a 98% decline in the breeding population since the 1980s. There are currently fewer than 130 breeding pairs in Ireland. Action is being taken by conservationists, working with farmers and landowners, to protect these birds and help boost the current breeding population.

Curlew build their nests on the bog surface each summer. Their camouflaged plumage helps to hide the adult bird from predators such as fox and grey crow while it sits in the nest. The eggs are mottled and muted in colour to blend in with the bog wildlife.

Chicks feed on the bog and in the surrounding farmland before they fledge. Long grass provides cover for them during this flightless period.

Adult birds feed by probing their long sensitive curved beaks into wet soil in search of invertebrates.

Curlew are not omnivores, so they leave the frozen bog in winter in search of invertebrates at the coast.

12/08/2026

Bogs! Again! This is Part 7 now, looking at amphibians and reptiles.... Well mostly frogs really. I do like frogs. Mum and Dad have a pond which is full of them and they sing at night :)

FROGS (Rana temporaria) are the most common animal found on bogs.

The common frog is an amphibian meaning that when it reaches adulthood, it can live both in water and on land, but must return to water to breed and complete its lifecycle. Frogs have lungs that allow them to breathe on land, but under water they breathe through their skin.

Breeding takes place in ponds in spring. Clumps of frog spawn, which later develop into tadpoles, may be seen in bog pools.

Adult frogs are known as gardeners' friends, as they are carnivores that feed on slugs and flies. Tadpoles are actually herbivores and can eat algae in your garden pond.

The frog's long sticky tongue is attached to the front part of its mouth. It can flick it out to catch flies.

The colourful pattern on the frog's skin helps to disguise it from enemies such as rats, herons and hedgehogs. A frog can also make its skin become darker or lighter to match its surroundings. This camouflaging colour change takes approximately two hours to effect.

Male frogs have vocal sacs that stretch to act like resonating chambers, allowing them to sing to attract a mate.

LIZARDS

On sunny days, Ireland's only native reptile, the viviparous (common) lizard may be seen sunning itself on rocks or lichen hummocks in the bogs.

'Viviparous' means 'live birth' and this lizard is so-named because it gives birth to live young.

Lizards are cold-blooded, meaning they cannot regulate their own body temperature. In cold weather, they can slow their metabolism to almost a complete stop. To heat their body temperature and start their metabolism, they must bask in the morning sunshine, absorbing heat. This is also the best time to see a lizard on your local bog, because when they are cold they are also slow-moving. By the afternoon, the lizard will be quick to hide when disturbed.

Similar to other reptiles, their body is covered in scales that blend in with the surrounding landscape, these scales help the lizard camouflage itself from predators.

The viviparous lizard can drop the end of its tail to escape predators allowing it to find shelter and leaving its predator with only a wriggling tail for lunch! The tail can grow again.

09/08/2026

A few days ago, I went to visit The Somme Museum near Conlig, County Down. I'd never been before and it was excellent. We had a guide (Austin) who knew his stuff and delivered it in a very impressive and accessible way.

I took some photos and notes so will start a wee series of posts (alongside the bog posts!) to share what I learned.

I really do recommend you visit this place for yourself. The audio visuals, films and the experience of being in a trench are very memorable.

03/08/2026

Part 6 of this thrilling series on bogs lol. This one is a bit more exciting as it involves killer plants... This is the last on Flora. I will move onto Fauna next :)

BOG PLANTS

Insect-Eating Plants

Plants are normally eaten by insects; on the bogs, however, the opposite happens, as it is the insects that become the prey.

The leaves of the sundew (Drosera spp.) are covered with red tentacles that contain glands at the tips that create a sticky trap. When an insect lands on a leaf, it gets stuck in the sticky fluid, and the leaf tentacles close around it. All of the nutrients in the body of the insect are then absorbed by the plant which stimulates the plant to grow.

With limited food available throughout the winter months, sundews die back to conserve energy. Watch out for sundew on a peatland in your local area between April and September.

Round-leaved sundew is not the only insect-eating plant on Irish Bogs.

Butterworts (Pinguicula spp.) have sticky glands along the margins of their leaves; these glands trap insects, and the leaves then curl around the insects to digest them.

Bladderworts (Utricularia spp.), which grow in bog pools, lure their prey by producing a sugary mucilage at the entrances of tiny bladders among their leaves. When an insect approaches, the mouth of the bladder opens suddenly and sucks in the creature in a gulp of water.

Why do they have this very special adaptation? Bogs are extremely nutrient-poor; this is due to the high water table on bogs, which limits decomposition and the associated release of nutrients.

02/08/2026

Part 5 of my latest wee series thinking about Irish bogland. This morning I was up on the Antrim plateau surrounded by purple heather, sphagnum moss, haretail cotton etc - putting all my new knowledge to good use with a group of American tourists.

BOG PLANTS

Bog Asphodel

Bog asphodel (Narthecium ossifragum) has glowing yellow star-shaped flowers with orange tipped anthers. The leaves are sword-shaped and arranged in groups of three on the stem.

It is also known as 'brittle bones', as it contains chemicals that have an adverse weakening effect on the bones of grazing animals. Its Latin name translates to 'bone breaker' in English.

Bog Asphodel hibernates in winter. Its leaves turn orange as it reabsorbs all the nutrients from the leaves into its underground stem. It is in flower on Irish bogs in July.

Bogbean

Bogbean (Menyanthes trifoliata) grows in pools, and its white flowers can be seen in May and June.

Shrubs such as cranberry (Vaccinium oxycoccos) and bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) bear edible fruits, while the scent of bog myrtle (Myrica gale) helps to repel biting insects.

01/08/2026

Part 4 of a series about Irish boglands. This isn't the most exciting series but Irish bogs are important and I always seem to be driving through them with my tour groups so I thought it was worth doing (and sharing) some research....

BOG PLANTS

Bog Cotton

Common cottongrass, also known as Bog cotton (Eriophoum spp.) has 4-5 lovely white seed heads that, at first glance, look like cotton wool.

It is the deepest rooting plant on the bog, as its roots can reach into the peat to a depth of 60cm. For this reason, Common cottongrass is sometimes called the 'bog snorkeller'.

Within the stem of bog cotton, internal air channels allow oxygen to move from the surface of the bog to the roots deep below the peat.

Why are these deep roots so important? In the nutrient-poor waterlogged bog habitat, being able to access nutrients where no other plant can, enables the common cottongrass to survive on bogs.

The plant dies back in winter. As the nutrients in its leaves are withdrawn to underground storage organs, the leaves turn red, giving the whole bog a rusty colour in winter.

Single-headed bog cotton (also known as hare's-tail bog cotton) is also found on bogs. This has only one white fluffy seed head.

We do not collect bog cotton in Ireland to make clothing, as the cotton fibres are too short; however, locally it was collected and spun into thread or used to stuff pillows.

When we were wee, I collected bog cotton with my granny and she used it to stuff pin cushions.

31/07/2026

Part 3 of a series about Irish Boglands

BOG PLANTS

Bog Heathers

Ling heather (Calluna vulgaris) grows on drier hummocks of bog moss and colours the bogs purple in autumn.

Ling heather is one of the tallest plants found on living peat-forming bogs, growing to a height of 50cm. It is a woody, shrubby plant associated with the drier parts of the bog, and has special adaptations that allow it live on the bog surface all year long.

Although it lives in a wetland, ling heather prefers the drier parts of the bog. It has small waxy leaves to prevent transpiration (water loss) from the plant during long warm days of summer and when buffeted by cold winter winds. Ling heather also holds very little water within its body, ensuring that it does not freeze in winter.

Ling heather makes its own food through photosynthesis, utilising its evergreen leaves year round. You can expect to see the pretty purple/pink flowers from August to October each year.

If you come across heather with a white flower it is said to bring you luck. This form of heather is rare and is more likely to be found in the west of Ireland where there is a luxurious growth of this plant!

30/07/2026

Part 2 of a series about Irish bogland.

BOG PLANTS

Sphagnum Mosses

Bog mosses or Sphagnum are the most important plants on bogs and are known as "the bog builders".

There are over 20 different species of Sphagnum moss found on Irish bogs and they form a living, multi-coloured carpet of green, yellow, red and brown over the entire surface of the bog.

Different types of bog mosses grow in different ways, forming hummocks, lining hollows, or growing across the surface of bog pools. They grow quickly and can hold up to 20-times their own weight in water.

The only part of the plant that is alive is its growing tip. As the plant grows upwards, it buries dead plant material on the surface of the bog, building the peat layer of Irish bogs at a rate of 1mm per year.

By analysing the species of Sphagnum moss growing on bogs, ecologists can determine if the bog is healthy and actively laying down peat.

During the First World War, Sphagnum moss was harvested and dried and stitched together as a wound dressing to treat injured soldiers. It was only when the last of the military hospitals closed in London in the 1920s that the use of Sphagnum moss as a wound dressing came to an end and collections of the moss from Ireland's bogs for this purpose stopped.

30/07/2026

For anyone who has taken my CS Lewis tour, this will be of interest...

https://www.facebook.com/share/18HM1tJyrj/

The next chapter of Narnia arrives on February 12, bringing audiences back to one of fantasy's most beloved worlds. 🦁✨

After years of anticipation, fans will finally return to the magical land beyond the wardrobe. The new adaptation promises a fresh journey through the world created by C.S. Lewis, introducing a new generation to its unforgettable heroes, mythical creatures, and timeless adventures.

For decades, The Chronicles of Narnia has remained one of fantasy's most cherished franchises. From the majestic Aslan to the White Witch and the breathtaking landscapes of Narnia, the series has inspired millions of readers and moviegoers across the globe.

While many details about the film are still being kept under wraps, excitement continues to build as audiences eagerly await the next cinematic visit to the enchanted kingdom. The project is expected to reimagine the beloved story while honoring the magic that made the books a worldwide phenomenon.

Fantasy fans have long hoped for Narnia's return to the big screen, and that wait is finally coming to an end. Whether you're revisiting the world or discovering it for the very first time, the upcoming film is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated fantasy releases of the year.

The wardrobe is opening once again. Mark your calendars because Narnia premieres on February 12, and a brand-new adventure is about to begin. 🗝️❄️

30/07/2026

Part 1 of a wee series of posts about Irish bogland.

There are great resources available online at the Irish Peatland Conservation Council (ipcc.ie).

Bogs are wetlands made of a combination of peat, plants and water. Peat is the result of the accumulation of partially decayed plants over thousands of years. The dead plants do not rot because they grow in waterlogged conditions where there is little oxygen.

HOW IRISH BOGS GROW

Bacteria and fungi (the agents of decay) are prevented from working in these conditions. A bog's main source of water is rainfall; this makes the bog acidic, giving it a pH of approximately 4.

RAISED BOGS formed in lakes created when the ice melted after the last Ice Age. Over thousands of years, these lakes slowly filled with dead plant material, which formed peat. Sphagnum moss is abundant on raised bogs and, as it can hold up to 20-times its weight in water, it helps ensure that bogs remain waterlogged year-round.

BLANKET BOGS develop on poorly drained soils where the weather is very wet. All of Ireland's high mountains are covered in this type of bog, as are the western lowlands where it rains two out of every three days.