Birds are all around us, calling out over rooftops; picking caterpillars from leafy tree tops; nesting amid the wildflowers of wet summer meadows; and hiding out in the shelter of hedgerows. While the habitats where wild birds live have been shaped and modified by human hand over millennia, the birds themselves are, in essence, still wild beings. They sing and dance to their own tune, just as evolution intended. And luckily for us, a great variety of wild birds can be easily seen and heard wherever one goes in Ireland.
It thus seemed an obvious choice for my friend and fellow bird enthusiast, Brían Mac Gloinn, and I, to make a radio series about Irelands wild birds. Brían is an accomplished musician, performer, music producer and at this stage has made several radio documentaries too, so combining his skills with my background as an ecologist, writer and broadcaster has worked wonderfully well.
We selected six species (in some cases species groups) that represent a range of bird life in Ireland, including migratory birds (cuckoo); clever crow family (jay); breeding waders (lapwing); a songbird (skylark); seabirds and global travellers (terns); and raptors (golden eagle and white-tailed sea eagle).
Together, we have spent a year visiting inspiring interviewees across the country, hearing their stories about how and why birds sing; about epic annual migrations; about bird behaviour and intelligence; and conservation and reintroduction projects.
Brían also went digging into folklore collections and archives of traditional tunes and songs, talking to those who could help shine a light in history, culture, folklore of each species that we explored. Interviewees include botanists, ornithologists, conservation ecologists, farmers, folklorists, traditional musicians, and academics. Each contributor gave so much great material that editing down to the highlights was always a challenge!
The series starts with the cuckoo, perfectly timed with the return of cuckoos to Ireland each April and May. For this episode, we began by meting botanist Zoe Devlin to explore the association between cuckoos and the meadows where orange tip butterflies lay eggs on cuckoo flowers as the cuckoo calls out. We also visited ornithologist Sam Bayley, who has been satellite tagging Irish cuckoos to find out where exactly they go each winter. Brían also speaks to folklorist Niall Mac Coitir about the folk-beliefs associated with the cuckoo in Ireland.
Musical collaborators for this episode include the inimitable Zoé Basha singing The Cuckoo; acclaimed musician Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh offering insights to the cuckoo’s strong presence in Irish music and song; Aoife Granville playing cuckoo tunes on flute, accompanied by Brían on fiddle, and Laoise Kelly performing an ancient harp tune associated with the cunning cuckoo.
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The second episode explores the idea of adaption, as jays are a colourful bird that have adapted perfectly to live among deciduous woodlands, their colourful plumage helping them blend with the colours of a mixed canopy. Jays are known for their raucous squawks, but with the help of ornithologist Seán Ronayne of Irish Wildlife Sounds, their wondrous ability to mimic other animals is given a good airing. Jays' accolade of being among the smartest birds in the world is explained by Professor of Comparative Cognition at the University of Cambridge, Nicola Clayton, while ecologist Cillian Roden shares his reflections about jays’ interactions with trees in the woodlands of Co. Galway.
Brían brings some European folklore to life with his adaptation of a Catalan folk-tale, told by Lisa O’Neill; an accompanying song written and performed by Brían and Catalan-Cavan songwriter Rita Perry; and nyckelharpa player Aina Tullier transports us to the Pyrenees with her jay-infused Occitan folk songs and tunes.
The very particular breeding habits of Lapwing are the focus of the third episode. We travelled to some wet Offaly fields in summer time to see a large group of breeding lapwing with their young, and have ornithologist Ricky Whelan tell us about their breeding habits and conservation challenges. We visited Anita Donaghy of BirdWatch Ireland at a coastal conservation site in west Donegal, where predator proof fencing is offering a lifeline to these endangered birds.
Folklorist Ríonach Uí Ógáin shares stories about lapwing in Irish folklore, and tells us why the lapwing is called the Pilibín, or Little Philip. Brían records an old Irish song from Aoife Ní Ghloinn, Director of Lárionad na Gaeilge in NUI Maynooth, as she tells us about the meaning of the lapwing in Irish song, while Brían and Gareth Quinn-Redmond conjure up an electronic-infused soundscape to match the strange calls made by lapwing over wet fields though spring and summer months.
Each episode is soundtracked with immersive on-location recordings from Brían and series collaborator Seán Ronayne, and closes with an especially composed new song written by Brían, often working with musical collaborators, inspired by the interviews and revelations that unfold with each program.
I am thrilled that these first three episodes of Feather & Flock have come together so well, the blend of music with ecology and conservation and the context of history and folklore creates a thorough portrait of each bird in Irish culture and landscapes though the ages.
The Lyric Feature: Feather and Flock episodes 1, 2 and 3 are broadcast on the 5th, 12th and 19th of May at 6.00 pm. Episodes 4, 5 and 6 will be broadcast in the Autumn. listen to more from The Lyric Feature here, or on your podcast platform of choice.
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