Mooney Goes Wild

Tonight's programme is a repeat of our Christmas Day special documentary 'Pope Leo's Elephant'. In 1514, King Manuel I of Portugal sent an extraordinary diplomatic gift to Pope Leo X: an Asian Elephant named Hanno. Derek Mooney and Niall Hatch dig deeper into Hanno’s remarkable story in the Eternal City, Rome.

Earlier today, we broadcast a special live programme on Radio One and on the RTÉ News Channel (09.00 - 11.00) and our focus was two of Ireland's most fascinating groups of birds: waders and garden birds.

When Lonesome George, the last Pinta Island Tortoise, died in 2012, he joined an ever-growing list of extinct creatures on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s “Red List”. News of an animal being forever lost from our planet should both shock us and fill us with sadness, but do people actually care?

Colm Flynn, Vatican Correspondent with EWTN joins us during an unexpected weather-related stay in Tromsø, a city frequently dubbed the “Capital of the Arctic”. Colm speaks to Fr. Arne Marco, a former marine engineer turned Catholic priest based in Tromsø.

At this time of year, thoughts turn to the North Pole and the Arctic region, which is of course home to Santa Claus, as well as a wonderful array of wildlife. On tonight’s programme, Richard and Niall reminisce about their own visit to the Arctic back in 2016, when the pair reported for us from Vardø, the easternmost town in Norway.

Strange as it may seem, Ireland was once a whaling nation, with stations established along our west coast. Recently, authors Alice Kinsella and Daniel Wade produced a beautiful book called 'The Wake of the Whale', which tells the story of a pair of Norwegian whaling stations in Co. Mayo which operated from 1908 till 1922.

In 1514, King Manuel I of Portugal sent an extraordinary diplomatic gift to Pope Leo X: an Asian Elephant named Hanno. On tonight’s programme, we give you a sneak peek at 'Pope Leo’s Elephant', our upcoming Christmas Day Nature on One documentary about Hanno and his time in Rome.

On 30th December, be sure to tune in to RTÉ Radio One between 09:00 and 11:00, when the Mooney Goes Wild team will be bringing you Winter Birds, a live programme all about the remarkable wading birds which flock to our beaches, estuaries and mudflats each winter, as well as our much loved garden birds.

In her wonderful new book The Keeper of the Bees: Bees and Beekeeping in Irish Folklore, beekeeper’s daughter and a student of folklore Eimear Chaomhánach weaves folktales about bees with her memories of growing up in a beekeeping household, collecting swarms with her father and learning how to harvest honey.

A recently published book that really caught our eyes is On Land and Water by acclaimed wildlife photographer Sheena Jolley. This superb book differs from most of the other nature photography books on the market, in that it incorporates the poetry of the late D.J. O’Sullivan alongside Sheena’s photographs.

The mysterious Nightjar is one of Ireland’s most elusive birds. With only sporadic records of breeding over recent decades, the general consensus was that we had effectively lost Nightjars from Ireland. However, a new survey coordinated by BirdWatch Ireland has confirmed that this species still survives in the southeast of the country.

Recently, Jesmond Harding from Butterfly Conservation Ireland was in-studio and brought a surprise guest...the (extremely large) pupal stage of the Death’s-head Hawk-moth. This extremely striking creature is not a common insect in Ireland.Terry Flanagan went to see this incredible creature before it was released into the wild.

All of us here in the Mooney Goes Wild team would like to extend our heartfelt congratulations to our esteemed colleague and friend Éanna Ní Lamhna, who last month was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Science by the University of Galway.

Last, but by no means least, we bring you Derek's Christmas pick. A great many listeners will have grown up inspired about wildlife by legendary artist, author and broadcaster Don Conroy. His latest book is a timely reminder of the simple wonders of Ireland’s natural environment, with exquisite illustrations and thoughtful words.

Staying with the avian theme, the Christmas recommendation of Richard Collins is a book about one of the most impressive and captivating aspects of ornithology. Written by Tim Birkhead, it is the perfect one-stop-shop for everything you have ever wanted to know about avian reproduction.

Up next, we have the recommendation of Niall Hatch, which, as you might expect, is a book about birds. It’s not a run-of-the-mill bird book, however, rather a tongue-in-cheek look by Matt Kracht at the ways in which our feathered friends can frustrate and irritate even the most dedicated of birdwatchers.

Lichens expert Paul Whelan has been working on his latest book for the past four years and it is Terry Flanagan's Christmas recommendation this year. For tonight’s programme, Terry travelled to Midleton, Co. Cork to meet Paul, to observe some of the local varieties of lichen and, of course, to chat about his book.

Next we have the selection of Eric Dempsey, who, in addition to his passion for birds is also a great fan of moths. It’s very fitting, therefore, that his choice of book this Christmas is Meetings with Moths: Discovering their Mystery and Extraordinary Lives by Katty Baird. In it, Katty roams Scotland seeking out, documenting and observing moths.

First up this evening is Éanna Ní Lamhna, who has chosen a wonderful book by Irish botanist and environmentalist Peter Wyse Jackson. It is the first ever comprehensive account of the historical and present-day uses of wild plant species in Ireland.

Every Christmas, the team here at Mooney Goes Wild likes to bring you some of our recommendations for wildlife-themed gifts for your nearest and dearest. This year, we have chosen to focus on natural history books, with Derek and panel each focusing on their own preferred title and interviewing the authors.