This was found on the shore at Sandmount Beara by Anne Needecker after Storm Ashley. Is it a form of sea cucumber? Barry Sullivan, Co Cork
This amazing looking creature is a young sea hare, Aplysia punctata. Why it has this name is a complete mystery to me as it is actually a mollusc whose shell is almost entirely hidden by its body. It can grow quite large (for a mollusc), up to 14cm, and is reddish in colour when young. Like snails and slugs, it has four tentacles on its head; some fanciful observer apparently imagined that the two front ones, which are flattened, looked like the ears of a hare.
In late November when Storm Bert was easing for a couple of hours, we came across dozens of these mushrooms lining the lakeside path of Portumna Forest Park. They were dramatically green, 4-5 inches in height and diameter - a bizarre and magical sight. What are they? Áine Cloghjordan, Roscrea
This is Stropharia aeruginosa – the verdigris agaric. It is one of very few green species, and the green colour resides in the slimy glutinous skin. This green pigment is soluble in water and washed out by rain, leaving the mushroom with a yellow cap. So, you were lucky to see it at this stage in all its bright verdigris-coloured glory.
Could you identify this weed that grows in our neighbour’s walls and borders? My dog makes a beeline for it whenever she has an upset tummy. She walks the length of the path looking specifically for this plant and it is the only one she eats. She has an innate understanding that this plant is what she needs. I wonder, would it also help humans with an upset tummy? Denise Doran, Strandhill, Co Sligo
The plant is Parietaria officinalis, wall pellitory, a native species in the nettle family. In his book Ireland’s Generous Nature, Peter Wyse Jackson describes it as an important traditional medicinal plant, used as a laxative, a diuretic, an ointment for piles, an aphrodisiac, and to treat digestive problems and kidney and bladder stones. The fresh leaves apparently are excellent for cleaning bottles and urinals fouled “by what adheres to them”. Your dog obviously knows more than we do, but I wouldn’t chance it myself.
Can you please identify this bird, which has begun visiting my bird table? Michael Lynch, Co Limerick
This is a female chaffinch, which, while having the same-colour pattern as the male, has a pale grey-brown dab colour as opposed to his bright rosy-orange pink. An exceedingly common species, the chaffinch is believed to outnumber humans on the island of Ireland. It visits bird feeding stations to ground feed on seeds and bits of peanuts dropped by other birds dining on the hanging seed and nut holders.
I came across this creature crossing the road on a wet and windy Mullaghmore Head. It moved smoothly, almost like a millipede rather than a worm, and it blended in well with dead grass stems. What is it? Pat Normile
This is a thunderworm, an unsegmented worm that is unrelated to earthworms. It can be up to 50cm long and appears suddenly overnight after wet weather and thunderstorms. They live in the soil and emerge after heavy rain to lay eggs on plants. These eggs are eaten by caterpillars and hatch out inside them. The young worms grow by digesting the body fluids of their host. They then leave and live in the soil until heavy rain lures them out on an egg-laying expedition.
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