... NATURE NOTE TORMENTIL One of the commonist flowers 10 dry pastures, field banks, Wwood and moorland is Tormentil It is a small plant with bright yelicw flowers and very hard, brown cylindrical, woody roots. Lookine at it from above, the petals ar distinctly ...

... NATURE NOTE. THE OCTOPUS Did you ever see an octopus? It is a mollouse with long narrow eyes resembling those of a goal. It has a horny parrot-like beak, eight spidery arms covered with sucker-discs, and a leathery skin suppiied with pigment oelg enabling ...

... NATURE NOTE: WOODBINE Have you noticed the abundance of wild woodbine this month? No ‘matter where one travels in the country just now, its clustered five lobed corollas may be seen smothering the hedgerows. Sometimes called honeysuckle from the abundance ...

... NATURE NOTE SAMPHIRE Because Sea Samphire is considered rare in the North, we made a search in the islands for it. The aromatic, powenful scented pilant. with its glabrous slightly glaucous, fleshy leaves and yellow flowers was not to be found in either ...

... NATURE NOTE: GOLDENEYE During the heavy snowfall of February, a fowler brocught to us a species of Wild Duck which he never had got before. After consulting several books on the subject, we both agreed as to the | bird’s identification. It was a female ...

... NATURE NOTE WOOD-WASP ! About this time last vear a visitor | to Donegal brought to us a ‘‘strange | fly” he had captured near Shrove. Two | weeks later a “Journal” reader in Co. ICcrk forwarded a similar ?eclmen. Then a Belfast lady showed us the j third ...

... NATURE NOTE. DEW All bodies have the property of transferring heat to others, in their neighbourhood. This is called radiation, an endeavouring to maintain an equilibrium of tempz;razuri-. Filamentous substances like wood, leaves or plants or grass, generally ...

... NATURE NOTE LACEWINGS Last year was a lacewing one. These exceedingly graceful and delicate insects were first noted at Bournemcuth in July and August. By September they appeared on many islands off the Kerry coast. On October 10th. they were in Donegal ...

... NATURE NOTE: THE RAVEN The Raven, Fiach Dubh, once almost driven to extinction because of its habit of attacking wounded or weakling farm animals, has increased again during the past thirty years. Largest of the Crow tribe and not easily confused with ...

... NATURE NOTE NERVE-WINGERS ’I‘HE -appearance in lnishowen ’ of two flies of the Neuroptera or “Nerve-winged Group” has recently been brought to our notice, firstly by Mr. W. M‘Gaughey. Moville, and secondly by Mr. M. O'Doherty, Shrove. 3 The first, captured ...

... NATURE NOTE THE WREN This tiny, three and a-half inches long, insect-eating bird is familiar to most of us through the appearance of its image on the reverse side of farthing pieces. In mythology it is the “King of all Birds,” for when the fowls of the ...

... NATURE NOTE THE ROWAN ;\ FEATURE ot the Dungloe» Letterkenny bus route at the moment is the fruited Rowan. Growing on rocky places, by mountain streams and in the glens its scarlet berries make a glorious, splash of colour that gladdens the heart of the ...