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Irish Wildlife

Blog

Swans on the River Barrow

21/8/2015

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Magic Mushroom Season

17/8/2015

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Phoenix Park

There are over 4000 species of mushroom in Ireland and we know little about a lot of the species ad their properties. There are over 8 species know to cause halluonogenic effect in Ireland and they may have been used by our ancestors to create some hallucinogenic rock art swirls.


How they are used
Magic mushrooms are small hallucinogenic mushrooms which grow in Ireland. You can eat them raw, dried, cooked or stewed. Psilocybe and Amanita Muscaria are the two most common varieties but they are different types of mushroom with different effects

Psilocybe mushrooms (psilocybe semilanceata, psilocybin)

Short-term effects:
  • Effects vary and begin 30 minutes to two hours after you take them
  • Effects and can last up to nine hours
  • Your experience depends on how you are feeling when you take them so it may be good or bad
  • They can distort colour, sound and objects
  • They can speed up and slow down time and movement
  • They can make you feel more creative and enlightened
  • You may feel sick, tired and disorientated
Amanita mushrooms(A muscaria and A pantherina, panther cap, amani agaric, fly agaric).

Short-term effects:
  • You will start to feel the effects after 30 minutes, and peak after 2-3 hours
  • Powerful hallucinations
  • Amanita can give a sort of out of body experience, you may ‘smell words’ and ‘taste colours’
  • Alcohol-like euphoria
  • Deep sleep with vivid dreams
  • Slurred speech and poor coordination
  • Convulsions, muscle twisting
  • Nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea
Long-term effects
  • Flashbacks
  • Anxiety

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Japanese Knot Weed

14/8/2015

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Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica), is an invasive herbaceous perennial (a plant that can live more than one year). Since it was introduced as an ornamental plant in the 19th Century from Japan, it has spread across the island of Ireland, particularly along watercourses, transport routes and waste grounds where its movement is unrestricted. Japanese knotweed can:

  • Seriously damage houses, buildings, hard surfaces and infrastructure growing through concrete, tarmac and other hard surfaces in some cases.
  • Threaten native plants and animals by forming dense thickets.
  • Block routes used by wildlife to disperse.
  • Riverside Japanese knotweed damages flood defence structures and reduces the capacity of channels to carry flood water.

  • Excludes native species;
  • Dies back in winter leaving river banks vulnerable to erosion;
  • Subsequent potential sedimentation impact on fish spawning areas;
  • In cases it can damage building foundations;
  • Collects litter in urban areas; and
  • Can damage hard surfaces by growing through them.


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East Coast Nature Reserve

13/8/2015

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    Tweets by @treegreenwood

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    I am a wildlife photographer based in Co. Wicklow, Ireland, who has an affinity for Ireland's landscape and wildlife. The magic of Ireland is truly evoked in the marriage of landscape and light.

    Contact: mactire.ie@gmail.com

    All images © Stephen Mc Ardle

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  • Home
  • Otters
  • Store
  • Blog
  • Cetaceans - Whales and Dolphins
    • Basking Shark
  • Mammals
    • Otter
    • Seals
    • Deer
    • Bats
    • Squirrel
    • Fox
    • Rabbits
  • Birds
    • Heron
    • Kingfisher
    • Gullible
    • Great Northern Diver
    • Robin
    • Cock Pheasant
    • Greylag Goose
    • Egret
    • Cormorant
    • Mute Swan
    • Reed Bunting
    • Lough Derg Sea Eagles Video
  • Wild Flowers
    • Wild flowers of Ireland
  • Trees
  • Biodiversity.ie
    • IWT Dublin Branch
    • Wildlife Rehabilitation Ireland
  • Animal Tracks
  • Insects
  • Irish Wildlife Fact Sheets
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  • Home