St Brigid’s Green school representatives went to the Helix to attend the Green Flag Award ceremony.
We were delighted to be receive a certificate and awarded our 5th flag for Biodiversity.
Well done and thank you to everyone who made it happen.
An Taisce has great pleasure in informing you that your application for the International Green Flag Award has been………….
successful!
In other words, we got our Green Flag for Biodiversity!
Congratulations to all the students and staff for all your hard work on Biodiversity.
A BIG thank you and well done to all the Green Schools committee, Ms. Breen, Ms. Beausang and Ms. Carwood.
The Green Flag award ceremony will take place on May 20th. More details to follow.
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) decided to make March 3rd World Wildlife Day to celebrate and raise awareness of the world’s wild fauna and flora. It’s basically a celebration of biodiversity.
For more information go to http://www.wildlifeday.org
It’s National Tree Week or Seachtain Náisiúnta na gCrann from 2nd – 8th March.
Events are organised by The Tree Council of Ireland and include:
• Lots of free Tree walks
• Tree planting
• Music about Trees
• Poetry about Trees
• Paintings about Trees
• Stories about Trees
• Lectures about Trees
• Laughs about Trees
For more information go to www.treecouncil.ie.
Everyone is talking about Biodiversity in Saint Brigids!
We know that it’s all about the variety in nature and our environment and that it includes every living thing.
But why is it important to us?
It is important for our health and the health of our planet.
It provides us with:
Can you think of anything else?
Biodiversity is important to us because it supplies Ecosystem services like clean air, clean water, food, textiles and medicines.
But loss of biodiversity is happening all over the world. Losing a species can have a huge impact on other plants and animals that might depend on it and this is turn affects other habitats and species.
Threats to biodiversity are mainly caused by:
Pollution
Pollution is caused by the introduction of contaminants into an environment that cause adverse change and affect the species and habitats within that environment. Different forms of pollution are water pollution caused by chemicals or sewage or air pollution caused by toxic fumes.
Example: In Ireland the Pearl Mussel is affected by polluted rivers.
Litter
Litter can harm or even kill our wildlife. Dumping litter and landfills seriously damage our habitats and ecosystems.
Example: Peanut the Turtle (see post here ).
Invasive Species
Invasive or introduced species are species that have been introduced into an environment or ecosystem that is not native to them. They then compete with native species for food, habitats and resources.
Example: Rhododenron is an introduced species which grows very densely in our woodlands. This means that it blocks out the light and other native plants cannot grow. By doing this it affects the biodiversity of our woodlands.
Over- harvesting and over-hunting for food, fashion and medical purposes has caused significant reduction in species and endangers many more e.g. the snow leopard is hunted for its fur. In Ireland, overfishing of the cod has reduced stocks around our shores.
Habitat loss is a very important cause of species extinction. Cutting down forests and hedgerows to provide agricultural land has resulted in loss of habitats. The loss of tropical forests, which holds 50% of the world’s biodiversity is proving to be the most significant threat to species.
An example in Ireland is the hare. It’s habitat has been disturbed by intensive farming methods.
Climate Change
If air or sea temperature changes, even by just 1 or 2 degrees, the habitats in which species live will also change and may even become uninhabitable to some species.
Climate change in Ireland has resulted in more rainfall and flooding which affects habitats and species.
Some of Ireland’s diverse plants and animals are under threat because:
Have you seen what the Green Team and our school has done to protect and increase biodiversity in our own school grounds?
Have a look at the following pages:
We are all learning so much and we have the results to prove it!
So well done! Keep up the good work and stay green 🙂
The Green Schools got a great write-up in the school newsletter.
We wanted to let all the students and their parents know about all the hard working the whole school has been doing for our Fifth green flag on Biodiversity.
If you haven’t seen a copy have a look at the pages below or go to www.saintbridgetsgreystones.ie.
Good luck to everyone with the Green school evaluation on Thursday 27th February !
All primary schools across Ireland have been asked to get involved with Greenwave 2014 .
Greenwave is a science project for primary students to observe and track the arrival of spring as it moves across the country.
Species you are asked to look out for are:
You can download your Spotter guides here.
Ms. Teehan’s 3rd class are going to do a project our local Blue Flag beach. We are looking forward to seeing what they find out.
Here are some interesting facts:
Beaches are awarded the Blue Flag based on the following:
1) Environmental Education and Information must be provided so that the community can learn what plants and wildlife can be seen in the area.
2) Water Quality – the water must clean with no waste or sewage.
3) Environmental Management – the beach must be litter-free with limited access to dogs and domestic animals. There must be good facilities to allow everyone to access the beach.
4) Safety and Services – there must be lifeguard on duty and first aid available.
All Blue Flags are awarded for one season at a time.
If the criteria are not fulfilled during the season or the conditions change, the Blue Flag may be withdrawn.
How can you help?
Useful Sites:
www.blueflagireland.org
www.cleancoastsireland.org
www.greystonestidy towns.ie
Green schools committee and Tidy towns day out at the beach!
http://www.nationalspringclean.org
The whole school took part in our Snow Leopard Project competition.
We were amazed at all the fabulous projects. Everybody worked so hard and did a great job.
The Green team found it very difficult to choose a winner so we had a chat with Brigid the Bee to see what she thought.
Brigid discussed it with Qiemo and ……
They decided on the following winners:
Congratulations to the winners!
Look how well we have done!
Here are the whole school’s results of our Biodiversity awareness surveys from 2012 and 2014.
A big thank you to Ms. Caffrey’s 6th class who analysed the results and created the pie charts. Well done!
Please click on the link below to view details of the pie charts or go to this page
Wicklow is also known as The Garden of Ireland because it is surrounded by beautiful countryside with scenic mountains and lakes and it is also by the sea. Because of all this natural beauty in Wicklow we have a lot of Special Areas of Protection (SPAs) and Special Conservation Areas (SACs). (Go to this post for more information). Greystones in particular has a lot of protected sites nearby. Have a look at the map below to see what sites are near you.
Here are just a few of special protected sites the Green team found:
Bray Head is a SAC because of its vegetated sea cliffs and dry heaths
Kilcoole Beach/The Murrough Wetlands is a SAC because of its salty meadows and fens. It is also a SPA because it is home to protected birds like the Little Tern (see photo below) and the Red-throated Diver.
Knocksink Wood is a Nature Reserve and a SAC because this woodland is home to rare plants and insects.
Wicklow Mountain National Park is a SPA and SAC due to the variety of habitats and wildlife found there.
Other protected sites nearby are:
Do you know of any more??
Aliens or Invasive Species are plants or animals that are not native to Ireland. They were usually introduced or brought into the country as gifts. They have no natural predators in Ireland which means that their numbers can increase and so they can multiply and spread over the country. Invasion of non-native or alien species are a major threat to biodiversity. Habitats can be affected, conservation damaged and the health of native plants and animals may also be threatened.
Examples of Introduced Species are:
Grey Squirrel
Grey squirrels were brought into the country in the early 1900s as a wedding gift. They escaped and spread rapidly over the entire country. They are stronger than our own native Red Squirrel and so took over their territories and pushed them out of their habitats. They also eat the same food as the red squirrel and that is why the red squirrel population has declined. Grey squirrels are also known to carry the Parapox virus which can be fatal to red squirrels. They can also cause damage to trees by stripping off the bark which causes the trees to die.
Rhododendron
Rhododendron is a beautiful plant that was introduced into Ireland in 1800s. It grows very rapidly and if not kept in check it will spread very fast. Rhododendron has been the cause of reduced biodiversity in our native woodlands because it grows so densely that it blocks out the light so other plants cannot grow. It also spreads it’s roots so there is no space or food for other trees and plants.
Sika Deer
Sika deer are Japanese deer that were introduced into Powerscourt in County Wicklow in the late 1800’s. They escaped and spread all over Wicklow. They are smaller than the native Irish Red deer and were able to use habitats that the red deer couldn’t. As their number grew, they started to interbreed with the red deer to produce Red/Sika hybrids (that is they are a mixture of red and sika deer). Scientists think that there are no true native Red deer left in County Wicklow. This is an example of how an alien species can affect the gene pool of a native species.
Zebra Mussel
Zebra mussels were introduced into Ireland in the mid to late 1990s. It is believed that came in on the bottom of a boat from another country. The zebra mussel attaches to hard surfaces using byssal threads. They have caused the population decline of native mussels by attaching to and colonising their shells. They also effect nutrient cycles by reducing the amount of phytoplankton and zooplankton and this in turn affects the water clarity and fish and plant populations
It’s time to get the school garden ready for Spring. So grab your gloves and trowels for our Gardening Day.
We’ll be sowing seeds, planting flowers and vegetables and generally tidying up our window boxes, flower pots and raised beds.
Parents, minders, grandparents and anyone with green fingers are all welcome.
Day: Monday 3rd February
Time: 1:40pm
Meet: The big yard
Supervision: Little ones will be looked after in one of the classrooms.
Please note if its raining we will reschedule to Wednesday 5th February .
Looking forward to seeing you there!
To prevent loss of biodiversity, it is important to conserve habitats and species. The NPWS (National Parks & Wildlife Service) is responsible for designating and conserving protected areas in Ireland. They are required to do this under European and National laws. The NPWS works with landowners and users to try and achieve the best balance between land-use and conserving nature.
Here is a list of the types of special areas that are protected and examples of them found in County Wicklow:
A Nature Reserve is an area of importance to wildlife, which is protected under Ministerial order. Most are owned by the State.
Nature Reserves in County Wicklow:
A Natural Heritage Area (NHA) is an area considered important for the habitats present or which holds species of plants and animals whose habitat needs protection e.g. Raised and Blanket Bogs in the midlands and West of Ireland.
There are no NHAs in County Wicklow.
A Special Protection Area (SPA) is an area of land, water or sea which has been identified as being of international importance for the breeding, feeding, wintering or the migration of rare and vulnerable species of birds found within the European Union.
SPAs in County Wicklow:
A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is an area which has been given special protection under the European Union’s Habitats Directive. SACs provide increased protection to a variety of wild animals, plants and habitats and are a vital part of global efforts to conserve the world’s biodiversity.
SACs in County Wicklow:
For a detailed map of SPAs and SACs in County Wicklow please visit this site
For more information on protected areas in Ireland go to www.npws.ie and www.heritagecouncil.ie.
Birds
Mammals
Plants
Birds
Plants
You may have noticed that The Green Team planted an Apple Tree in our school garden.
But there is something extra special about our apple tree!
We decided that since space is limited in our school grounds that we would get a special type of Apple tree. It’s a miniature Apple tree so it takes up less space but that’s not what is so special about it. You see it is two apple trees graphed together. This mean two different types of apple tree are stuck together or grafted on to each other which makes two trees in one. The two species are Elstar (which produces red apples) and James Grieve (which produces yellow apples).
Did you know that for an apple tree to bear fruit( i.e apples) you need two apples trees to cross-pollinate with each other. We don’t have the space for two trees so we bought this tree. The great thing about this is that not only will the different apple trees cross-pollinate with each other to make apples but we will get two different types of apples. So more apples for the birds and insects and for us!
The apples will fruit in Autumn. Bags the first one!
The adoption papers have arrived and St. Brigid’s have now officially adopted Qiemo (pronounced Kee-mo) the snow leopard.
To celebrate our new adoption we are having a competition! All classes have been asked to do a project on the Snow Leopard and the winning entry will win a Free Day Pass to Dublin Zoo. Good luck everyone!
To find out more information about Qiemo go to http://www.dublinzoo.ie/Animals/Snow-Leopard/9-3-6/Snow-Leopard.aspx
If you are visiting Dublin Zoo have a look out for Qiemo near the Asian Forests (area 4 on the map).
St. Brigid’s has adopted a Snow Leopard and the whole school is learning all about them.
Here are a few interesting facts:
It’s time for the Biodiversity Awareness survey!
As some of you may remember, last year we asked everyone from 1st to 6th class and all the staff to fill out our Biodiversity awareness survey. This is part of our Green school application for our Biodiversity flag. The aim of this survey was to assess how much our school knew about Biodiversity, why it is important, what threatens it and what we as a school can do to protect and increase it in our local environment.
Most of you should now have received your survey for this year. Please complete them and hand them in by Friday at the latest.
Why do we have to fill in another survey?
Well we need to establish whether the school has learnt anything about Biodiversity since we started our new theme back in 2012. We then compare the results from last year with the results from this year and hopefully show an increase in our awareness of Biodiversity and our environment.
So stay tuned to see what our analysis and results show. We know everyone has been working really hard on Biodiversity so we are looking toward to seeing a good increase in awareness.
To see a copy of the survey go to: stbrigidsgreenschools.edublogs.org/biodiversity-2/biodiversity-awareness-survey/
Did you know that it’s not only animals and plants that are protected as part of conserving Biodiversity? Certain areas of land are protected too. These are called National Parks.
A National Park is an area that is protected because of it’s beautiful countryside, wildlife and cultural heritage. It is a public space maintained by the government to preserve nature, history or science.
National Parks help to conserve species and their habitats and protect biodiversity.
Ireland has 6 National Parks:
Have you visited any of our National Parks?
Welcome back and Happy new year to everyone!
There was great excitement at the first Green schools committee meeting of 2014.
Based on our Biodiversity Green Code
‘Don’t let species go extinct, in this world we are all linked’
we decided to adopt an endangered species. An endangered animal is an animal which is not surviving in large numbers because humans are either killing too many of them or we are spoiling the places/habitats where those animals live.
We heard that Dublin Zoo do great work with conservation and protection of endangered animals so we decided to adopt an animal through them.
We had nine animals to choose from:
We had a vote and the winner was……..
The Snow Leopard!
So stay tuned to our blog and keep an eye on the Green Schools noticeboard for information on our latest addition to the Green team.