Morrison Cottage

	MORRISON COTTAGE Culmore, Co Mayo
Welcome	The perfect place for time away from the pressures of modern life.	Architectural Notes
Introduction		Important Information
History		Heating & Internet
Wildlife	Comments Welcome!	Places to see
Dream Homes Magazine - Article 1	rcwalter@yahoo.com	Circular Walk from Cottage

The Wildlife around Morrison Cottage - well some of it!
Please make a note of anything of interest you see in our visitor book

Mammals

The most common mammals you will see are hares, often just in front of the patio doors. There used to be rabbits in the field and surrounding areas but these seem to have been wiped out, probably by foxes and mink. The mink are escapees or deliberate releases from fur farms and have been disastrous for the wildlife. There are also badgers, mice, voles, bats and stoats (known as weasels in Ireland). In some areas there are also pine martens. There are some feral goats on the hills.

Hare

One of our visiting hares seen from the French Windows

Birds

There are many species of birds to be seen around the Culmore, depending on season. The following list is not comprehensive. Please feel free to consult the bird book on the bookshelf for details and identification.

Blackbird
Blue Tit
Chaffinch
Coal Tit
Cuckoo
Dunnock
Goldfinch
Greenfinch
Great Tit
Hooded Crow
Linnet
Long-tailed Tit

Magpie
Pheasant
Pied Wagtail
Robin
Song Thrush
Stonechat
Swallow
Tree Creeper
Willow Warbler
Wood Pigeon
Wren

Reptiles and Amphibians

According to legend St Patrick banished snakes from Ireland. There are Common Lizards in Mayo but they aren’t common and haven’t been seen at Culmore. There are common frogs in the area. Smooth newts are also found in Ireland but it is not known whether there are any in the Culmore area. Irish Wildlife Trust would like sightings of lizards and newts reported to them (http://iwt.ie)

Butterflies

The following species have been seen at Culmore:

Brimstone
Dingy Skipper
Green Veined White
Large White
Meadow Brown
Orange Tip
Painted Lady

Dingy Skipper

Dingy Skipper in the lanes around the cottage

Peacock
Red Admiral
Ringlet
Small Heath
Small Tortoiseshell
Speckled Wood

It is not known whether there are any Marsh Fritillary butterflies locally. It is the only one of 12,000 species of insects in Ireland covered by EU Law because it is in danger of becoming extinct in Europe. It favours wet fields so should be in the area. Dublin Naturalists Field Club welcomes sightings of butterflies for their survey. This part of Mayo isn’t very well covered by butterfly reporters. http://www.dnfc.net/

Other Insects and Spiders

There are many insects and spiders to find. Some may even be new species. Consult the guide book as a start to identification. The largest insect seen here (excluding Lepidoptera) has been the cockchafer.

FLORA

This is a great area for plant-hunters. With unimproved grassland and bogs there is a lot of natural vegetation to explore. In particular there are many orchids in spring and early summer growing in the fields and lane verges. Interesting plants to look out for in wet areas are Butterwort and Sundew (both insectivorous).

The main (native/wild) tree species growing around Culmore are Alder, Ash, Birch (Silver and Downy), Blackthorn (Sloe), Hawthorn, Elder, Sycamore, Wych Elm and various species of willow. Less common are Crab Apple, Holly and Rowan. In addition you will see conifers that have been planted for effect, or shelter, and Horse Chestnut seeded from gardens. The most common shrubs in hedgerows (traditionally Hawthorn) are Box, Bilberry, Blackberry and Snowberry. In some areas there is Gorse There are a few fuchsia plants around.

Orchids

Common Spotted Orchids outside the kitchen window

The herbaceous plants include:

Buttercup species
Bird’s foot Trefoil
Black Medick
Brooklime
Clover species
Common Ragwort
Common Spotted Orchid
Common Vetch
Daffodil (wild)
Dock species
Devil’s Bit Scabious
Early Purple Orchid
Forget-me-not
Foxglove
Garlic Mustard
Green Figwort

Hawkweed species
Hogweed and many other members of the carrot family
Honeysuckle
Iris (Yellow Flag)
Marsh Thistle & other thistle species
Meadowsweet
Montbretia
Ox-eye Daisy
Primrose
Ribwort Plantain
Self-Heal
Silverweed
Square stalked Willowherb
Wall Pennywort
Watermint

Plus various species of grasses and rushes.

The non-flowering plants are well-represented by a variety of ferns, mosses and lichens. The trees near the cottage have a good encrustation of lichen.