A monumental new book

One of the highlights of the time I spent working for the National Parks and Wildlife Service (the lowlights are for another day) was the collaboration with the naturalist and photographer Robert Thompson - on recording projects for dragonflies, orchids and lichens, as well as a comprehensive natural history of Ulster (you can see hs work at: http://www.robertthompsonphotography.com/). To my mind - and this is coming from someone who has been exposed to WWF's superb photo library - he is the most talented wildlife photographer I know.

The plan for the natural history was to cover all nine countires in the province, including the three that are in the Republic. Which was a good idea because, apart from getting away from the ugly political connotations of Ulster as being synonomous with Northern Ireland, these three counties are of interest in their own right - especially Donegal. John Faulkner, an old colleague and former head of Nature Conservation in the Northern Ireland Environment and Heritage Service, was the lead co-author, together with Robert, but there were chapter contributions from other former colleagues of mine, including Julia Nunn and Ralph Sheppard.

The book has finally emerged in print after more than five years and it has been well worth the wait. I missed the launch in Belfast but Robert kindly posted me a limited edition copy, signed by the co-authors. Yesterday, I had a chance to go through it. I spent an hour doing so, wile listening to beautiful music by Debussy (and sipping a gin and tonic!).

Many people in the Republic have been to Donegal and it is, perhaps, the most romantic county in Ireland, with its brooding mountains, dark lakes and ever-varying coastline. However, lots of people have never visited Northern Ireland, which is a pity, because it has spectacular scenery, of a kind you won't find anywhere else. As for Cavan and Monaghan, while they are less dramatic counties, their natural history has often been overlooked (my friend Shirley Clerkin is doing an excellent job of redressing this in Monaghan).

The book covers all the habitat types found in the province but to me the landscapes that dominate my own memories are the mountains and the coast. Each of the main mountain ranges - the Derryveaghs, the Bluestacks, the Sperrins, the Mournes and the Antrim Plateau - is different and, of course, this has as much to do with geology as anything else. Equally, if you travel along the coast from Carlingford Lough in the east to Donegal Bay in the west you can't go more than a few miles without seeing spectacular scenery.

At long last, the province has the kind of book that it deserves to show its natural wonders. Hats off to John, Robert and their collaborators. Now, if only the other three provinces could get similar treatment...

Here is a link to the Blackstaff web page for the book.
http://www.blackstaffpress.com/ProductInfo.aspx?Product=171