Cornafulla Micro Reserve

01/06/2026

We were very pleased to see Ellen O’Carroll’s project, Peatland Archaeology of Cornafulla Bog, Co. Roscommon, included among the Royal Irish Academy Archaeology Research Grants for 2026.

The project will revisit earlier archaeological discoveries on Cornafulla Bog, including tóchair and other wooden structures recorded during peatland survey work in the 1990s. It will ask what, if anything, remains visible today, and how peat depth, drainage and landscape change may have affected the survival of archaeological material.

This is an important recognition of Cornafulla Bog’s archaeological significance, and of its place within the wider Shannon and Clonmacnoise landscape.

We look forward to welcoming Ellen to Cornafulla and learning more as the project develops.

More here:

The Royal Irish Academy is delighted to announce that six grants have been awarded under this year’s Archaeology Research Grants scheme thanks to funding from the National Monuments Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Historic Environment Division, Department for ...

30/05/2026

RTÉ CountryWide visited Cornafulla Bog recently to look at the wider question of land use, restoration and renewable energy.

We all need clean energy. But peatlands are long-term public and ecological assets too – and Cornafulla is not an ordinary site.

This is a deep peat bog on the western bank of the Shannon, bordered on three sides by the Shannon Callows SAC and SPA, an internationally important wetland landscape for wintering birds. It is also within sight of Clonmacnoise, one of Ireland’s most important early medieval monastic site.

At Cornafulla, the question is not simply what can be built on the bog, but what the bog is already doing: storing carbon, holding and filtering water, supporting wildlife, helping to reduce flooding – and what it could continue to do if restoration and recovery are allowed to take priority.

The challenge is not to destroy one asset in order to create another, but to think more carefully about where different forms of infrastructure belong.

Thanks to Ella McSweeney and RTÉ CountryWide for visiting Cornafulla and listening on site.

Listen https://www.rte.ie/radio/podcasts/22617502-cornafulla-bog-competing-land-uses/

Image: The Shannon at Callowbeg and Cregganabeeka, with Calf Island / Inchinalee and the opposite bank visible. This is part of the wider Shannon Callows landscape beside Cornafulla Bog.

27/04/2026

Following our recent visit to Cornafulla Bog with Roscommon County Council Biodiversity Officer Gerard Hannon, we went back out to look again at the bog rosemary we came across on site.

It’s not a plant you would normally expect to find here, and that prompted a bit more looking and reading. This short piece came out of that — focusing on the name Lus na móinte and the plant itself.

Bog rosemary is a small peatland plant, now considered a declining species, growing low among mosses and easily missed.

A reminder that even a small find can open up a place in a different way.

Cornafulla Bog, April 2026.

22/04/2026

We’re delighted to share that Cornafulla Micro Reserve has been confirmed as a host site for the Bog Bothy this summer.

During July and August 2026, Bog Bothy will come to Cornafulla Bog through the work of the Irish Architecture Foundation(IAF), architects 12th Field, and Tóchar, whose support is making this possible.

We recently met on site with the team to talk through the location and the programme.

At Cornafulla, the Bothy will become a base for walks, talks and gatherings led by Cornafulla Micro Reserve – a place to spend time in the landscape, share knowledge, and explore the bog and the wider Callows. There will also be opportunities for people to spend time on the bog and get involved.

We’ll share more details soon as things take shape.

22/04/2026

We recently took part in two really useful Community Wetlands Forum webinars with Colm Croffy, looking at volunteer engagement and event planning.

A few ideas stayed with us. One was not to start by asking someone to join a committee, but to invite them into a real activity in a clear and manageable way. Another was the importance of being inclusive and casting the net wide, so that new people feel welcome to get involved. And once people do get involved, the work is to keep engaging them and make them want to stay.

It was also a good reminder to show people taking part and enjoying themselves, and to recognise their contribution.

Many thanks to Colm and to the Community Wetlands Forum for two generous and practical sessions.

22/04/2026

We had a great visit to Cornafulla Bog recently with Roscommon County Council Biodiversity Officer Gerard Hannon.

One of the most interesting moments was finding this small bog rosemary plant on site — and hearing that it wouldn’t normally be expected here.

It’s a small plant that can easily be missed, growing low among mosses, but it’s an important one. Bog rosemary is a declining peatland species, so seeing it here is a really encouraging sign.

Despite the name, it’s not related to the rosemary used in cooking — it’s a native bog plant adapted to survive in wet, nutrient-poor conditions.

We’ve also included a drawing by Carl Linnaeus, who named the plant after the myth of Andromeda, imagining it as a figure anchored out in the water.

A reminder that even small finds can change how we see a place.

Thanks again to Gerard Hannon and Roscommon County Council for the visit and support.

31/03/2026

It was great to attend the recent launch of the Community Wetlands Forum’s Guide for Wetland Communities Engaging in Creative Projects at IMMA.

It was a valuable opportunity to meet other community wetlands groups, learn from the wider network, and be part of a wider conversation about wetlands, public engagement, and creative work.

With thanks to Community Wetlands Forum for the photographs.

31/03/2026

Earlier this year, members of Cornafulla Micro Reserve took part in the International Swan Survey.

Our survey work covered sites from Athlone out towards Long Island, Cornafulla, then on to Calf Island (Inchinalee) and around to Drumlosh, where we recorded a substantial number of Whooper Swans across the survey area.

Taking part in this kind of fieldwork helps build local knowledge of the wider wetland landscape and contributes to a better understanding of how Whooper Swans use this area in winter.

This survey was carried out as part of the International Swan Survey, coordinated in Ireland through BirdWatch Ireland and the Irish Wetland Bird Survey.

31/03/2026

A recent trail camera recording of an otter on Cornafulla Bog.

Wildlife monitoring is one of the ways we are building local knowledge of the bog and sharing its ecological value with a wider public. We are looking forward to developing this work further over the coming months.

We will share more updates from the bog here.

31/03/2026

Welcome to Cornafulla Micro Reserve.

Cornafulla Micro Reserve is a community-led organisation focused on the natural, cultural and ecological heritage of Cornafulla Bog. We work with local landowners and the wider community to support conservation, learning, and public engagement around the bog.

We will use this page to share updates on activities, species recording, walks, talks, and other ways of learning more about Cornafulla Bog.

More information: www.cornafullamicroreserve.com