Newcastle Wicklow Biodiversity Group

23/03/2026

Join us for a community workshop on the Newcastle river with ecologist Alex Konieczka from Understory on Sat the 28th of March 2026 from 2.30pm until 4.30pm in the Newcastle Community Centre. The event is funded by the Community Foundation Ireland.

13/10/2025

The Newcastle Biodiversity Group, the East Wicklow Rivers Trust and the BirdWatch Ireland Wicklow Branch would like to invite you for a field trip exploring the freshwater habitats of the
East Coast Nature Reserve and the Murrough SAC. The walk
will be lead by Dr Tom Curtis.

Sunday the 19th of October 2025 at 11am.

Parking at the reserve entrance is limited so please park in the village or at the end of Sea Road and walk up.

The event is supported by Local Authority Waters Programme and Community Foundation Ireland.

Please register via Eventbrite:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-freshwater-habitats-of-birdwatch-irelands-east-coast-nature-reserve-tickets-1776966888799?aff=oddtdtcreator

13/10/2025

The Newcastle Biodiversity Group, the East Wicklow Rivers Trust and the BirdWatch Ireland Wicklow Branch would like to invite you for a field trip exploring the freshwater habitats of the
East Coast Nature Reserve and the Murrough SAC. The walk
will be lead by Dr Tom Curtis.

Sunday the 19th of October 2025 at 11am.

Please register via Eventbrite:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-freshwater-habitats-of-birdwatch-irelands-east-coast-nature-reserve-tickets-1776966888799?aff=oddtdtcreator

Parking at the reserve entrance is limited so please park in the village or at the end of Sea Road and walk up.

The event is supported by Local Authority Waters Programme and Community Foundation Ireland.

26/08/2024

Butterfly and moths field trip and presentation with Jesmond Harding
Friday 30th of August
4pm for field trip, Castle Inn car park, Newcastle or
5pm for presentation, community centre Newcastle

Jesmond Harding, Ireland’s leading butterfly expert, will hold a walk through local habitat in search of butterflies followed by an illustrated talk on Ireland’s butterflies and moths in the Community Centre. Butterflies and moths comprise about 10% of life on the planet. Learn how they develop, why they matter, how to identify Ireland’s butterflies, the habitats they need and how you can attract butterflies and moths to your garden. The event is suitable for people from the age of five. The walk is mainly through grassland and does not involve strenuous activity. Jesmond will have copies of his book on Ireland’s butterflies available at a reduced price of €25.

23/08/2024

For Heritage Week 2024 in Newcastle, we will be joined by entomologist Brian Murray, who will lead us on a bug hunt around our locality. Brian has been singing the virtues of Irish invertebrates for many years and shares the many natural fauna wonders he comes across as on Twitter.
On our walk, Brian will encourage us to 'get our eye in' and start noticing the insect and invertebrate fauna surrounding us daily. We can do this by turning a stone or a log, running a sweep net over a weeded area, or simply standing still for a period and beginning to notice all of nature's moving parts.
Once you start looking, you'll be amazed at the abundance of animals waiting to be discovered in our local area. There's a whole world of insect and invertebrate fauna just waiting to be noticed.
The event is funded by the Community Foundation Ireland under the Environment and Nature- Biodiversity Grant Scheme.

17/08/2024

Newcastle bat walk led by local ecologist and bat specialist Faith Wilson
20th of August 8.30pm
Meeting in the Castle Inn car park

All welcome to learn about bats and walk around the village to see what bats we can find. Dress warmly with good footwear. Bring a torch and a yellow vest if possible. Children are welcome and must be accompanied by an adult. No dogs.
Please note that this walk is weather dependent - if it's lashing rain and windy we will follow the sensible behaviour of the bats and stay in our roosts...

The walk is funded by the Community Foundation Ireland under the Environment and Nature- Biodiversity Grant Scheme a bat walk and talk will be held in Newcastle Village, Co. Wicklow.

14/11/2023

30/08/2023

Super Blue Moon tonight , does that mean it’s a good night for batwatching ? 🦇

30/08/2023

25/08/2023

Tonight 6.30pm, Nature Walk with Jenny McElwain, Professor of Botany, Trinity, meeting at the Birdwatch Reserve Newcastle.

19/08/2023

Hugh thanks to everyone who came out to the brilliant bat walk and talk with ecologist and bat expert Faith Wilson in Newcastle on Tuesday. The turn out was phenomenal. If you are interested in hearing more about biodiversity or have ideas for talks, please get in touch. [email protected]

10/08/2023

Newcastle Village Bat Walk - 15th August 2023
As part of the Biodiversity Action Plan being prepared for Newcastle Village funded by the Community Foundation Ireland under the Environment and Nature- Biodiversity Grant Scheme a bat walk and talk will be held in Newcastle Village, Newcastle, Co. Wicklow on the 15th August 2023. The walk will be lead by local ecologist and bat specialist Faith Wilson.
Meeting at 20:45 at the Castle Inn car park in Newcastle Village
All welcome to learn about bats and walk around the village to see what bats we can find. Please dress warmly, with stout footwear and bring a torch. Children are welcome but must be accompanied by an adult. The walk will conclude at c.22:00 Please note that this walk is weather dependent - if it's lashing rain and windy we will follow the sensible behaviour of the bats and stay in our roosts...