Ballydehob Tidy Towns

20/08/2026

Mark it into your Diary: Ballydehob Apple Day 27th September

13/08/2026

Reminder: Litter picking every Thursday at 7pm. ALL WELCOME!

26/07/2026

The swifts in Ballydehob are already getting ready for their trip to their homeland Africa. An impressive Swift Walk, led by Dr. James O’Neill, Ornithologist at University College Cork happened on Thursday 23th. It was organised by Damaris Lysaght and Ian Hardy of Ballydehob Swift Group in cooperation with Ballydehob Tidy Towns. A group of about 25 interested people watched as the young birds showed off their flying skills in the sky.
Dr. James O’Neill explained that after leaving their nests swifts stay in the air for up to four years until they eventually touch down for the first time to land in their nests. While one half of the brain sleeps, the other focuses on flying, and they switch sides back and forth. Food and the necessary moisture are taken in during flight. Ballydehob Tidy Towns together with Birdwatch and other groups, would like to preserve these birds and secure the future of the breeding colony by providing additional nesting sites for more breeding pairs
If you would like to help survey swifts in Ballydehob, you can message Ian mob. 086 068 0955, to add you to the Ballydehob Swift Group in WhatsApp.

17/07/2026

Ballydehob Tidy Towns would like to invite everyone to a Swift Watch, guided by Damaris
Lysaght and Ian Hardy from the Ballydehob Swift Group. We will meet on Thursday, July 23
at 8:30 PM at the back of the Bank House, Ballydehob. Everyone is very welcome. If you
have a pair of binoculars, bring them and maybe some midge repellent as well!
The swift is on the Red List of birds of conservation concern in Ireland because its population has
declined by a massive 69% between 1998 and 2023. Conservation actions across the island are
helping to recover populations.

They arrive in Ireland from Sub-Saharan Africa from late April through May and leave from the end
of July onwards. The few months they spend here are extremely important because they come
here to breed. Once they have found a place to nest, they will return to it every year for the rest of
their lives. In Ballydehob, we have 8 nesting pairs of swifts. They are a fascinating species and very
different in many ways from all other birds.
Nest box projects, especially built in nest boxes, can provide safe long-term homes for new
breeding pairs of swifts.

05/06/2026

Cork Anti-Litter Challenge – Evaluation Update

This inspection took place on a Friday, when the first visitors had already arrived for the long weekend and the Country Music Festival. Despite the increased activity, we achieved an excellent score of nearly 96 points, keeping up very well with the other participants. A fantastic result!

We also enjoyed an amazing Country Music weekend, with a wonderful atmosphere and great music filling the pubs and streets.

Each morning, our volunteers were out helping to keep the area clean. Most of what we collected was **cigarette butts and glass**, with surprisingly little other litter.

A huge thank you to everyone who took part and helped make a difference. 💚

On Saturday morning, we collected around 300 cigarette butts, and by Sunday morning, that number had risen to over 1,000. Despite heavy rain on Sunday washing many away, we still had to collect significantly more than the previous day. We estimate the total number of cigarette butts collected over the weekend was close to 1,500.

Considering that one cigarette butt can pollute up to 1,000 litres of water**, this was a meaningful contribution to protecting our environment. Every small action counts, and together we are making a real difference. 🌍♻️

Thank you again to everyone who helped!

01/06/2026

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us for the Rossbrin Beach Clean on Saturday, 30th May, and braved the wet weather to help make a real difference!

Despite the rain, we had a fantastic turnout of volunteers and achieved so much together. We were delighted to completely clear the problematic dumping corner identified during our recent visit with Cork County Council Litter Warden Aiden O’Donovan, and the outer beaches were left in pristine condition.

Every piece of litter picked up is one less item that could end up in the stomach of a bird or fish — a small action that makes a big difference to our local environment and wildlife.

Thank you again to everyone who came out and gave their time and energy in spite of the weather. Your support means so much to our community and coastline.

We hope to see many of you again for our next beach clean in Autumn — together, we can keep our beautiful shores clean!

27/05/2026

Today in Rossbrin, we were delighted to meet with Cork County Council Litter Warden, Aidan O’Donovan, as part of preparations for our upcoming beach clean on Saturday, 30th May (12pm).

Aidan took the time to visit a problematic dumping corner and gave us valuable advice on how best to tackle the issue. It was great to have the opportunity to talk through ideas and, most importantly, to know that we have his support for our local projects going forward.

A big thank you to Aiden for his time, guidance, and encouragement — we’re looking forward to continuing the work together!

27/05/2026

https://birdwatchireland.ie/our-work/advocacy-policy/campaigns/handsoffnature/?utm=.share.copy

Tell politicians how important nature is to you and stop the EU from tearing up the laws that protect birds and nature.

26/05/2026

26/05/2026

An unknown supporter did an nice planting and weeding job on the Slán go Fóill bed. Thank you very much for that.👏👏👍👍🌻🌞