Birdwatch Ireland launch new 'In your Nature' podcast

A new podcast called 'In your Nature' is being launched by BirdWatch Ireland, in partnership with Laois and Offaly County Councils.

A new episode of 'In your Nature' will be available each Monday over the course of a six-week period, beginning on March 1st. Further series will follow in the summer and autumn.

The podcast will be available on all leading podcast providers, including Spotify, Google Podcasts and Apple Podcasts.

'In your Nature' will be anchored by Laois native Ricky Whelan, Project Officer with BirdWatch Ireland, and the well-known media voice of Niall Hatch, Public Relations, Branches & Development Officer with BirdWatch Ireland.

Ricky Whelan is known for his work with BirdWatch Ireland, especially on Swift conservation, and also for his roles with the Irish Wildlife Trust Laois-Offaly Branch and the Abbeyleix Bog Project.

As a true Midlands conservation expert, he is the ideal voice to lead out this new podcast – an excellent communicator, he delivers regular events and lectures on various bird and biodiversity related topics and has contributed to many radio broadcasts and podcasts both in Ireland and the UK.

Niall Hatch is the go-to person when the Irish media require insight and comment on anything bird-related. Niall has been a keen birdwatcher and wildlife enthusiast since childhood and has travelled the world pursuing this interest ever since.

Niall has contributed to a wide variety of radio and television broadcasts both in Ireland and abroad and will be well known to anyone who regularly tunes into natural history programmes.

The spring series of the podcast will feature topics like the dawn chorus, nest boxes and connecting with nature during lockdown. The podcast will also look at wider biodiversity, including spring plants and the bogs of the Midlands.

Ricky Whelan said: “I’m delighted we could team up with the local authorities and the Keep Well Campaign to produce this podcast. Just talking about birds and nature excites me and lifts my mood and I hope our audience also gets a lift from listening and in-turn feel a little closer to nature”.

Speaking about the launch of the Podcast, Niall Hatch added: “When I’m not actually out watching birds, my favourite thing in the world to do is to talk about them. Ricky and I often have great chats about birds and nature anyway, so the logical next step was to record them and let others eavesdrop on our conversations. More people than even before have been turning to nature and developing an interest in wildlife in recent times, and we’re hoping that people are going to enjoy listening to our podcast as much as we enjoy making it.”

The 'In Your Nature' podcast is brought to you by BirdWatch Ireland, Laois and Offaly County Councils and the Keep Well Campaign, an initiative of the Government of Ireland with funding from the Healthy Ireland Fund and the Sláintecare Fund delivered by Pobal.