Daybreak with Evonne Ferguson

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Naturefile is a celebratory journey to the lesser-known realms of nature in Ireland with Anja Murray. With surprising stories uncovered each week, about everything from lichens to trees, Swallows to Sea Eagles, starfish and turtles, there are elements of science, history and folklore.

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27 episodes
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English

Episodes 27

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Yesterday · 5 min
Naturefile - Freshwater Mussels
The freshwater pearl mussel is a bivalve mollusc found in clean, fast-flowing rivers, and occasionally in lakes. It is a highly threatened animal, categorised as critically endangered in Ireland and across Europe. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Wednesday · 6 min
Naturefile - Autumn Foxes
Foxes are beautiful in any season, but autumn truly suits them. Whether it’s the orange sea buckthorn berries that create a perfect tone-on-tone with their fur. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
September 7 · 5 min
Naturefile - Hairy Mollies
The term ‘Hairy Molly’ has often been used in Ireland to describe any hairy or fuzzy-looking caterpillar. This term is said to have originated from the Irish language where ‘mala’ or ‘malaí’ (plural) is the Irish word for an eyebrow. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
September 1 · 6 min
Naturefile - Cold water Coral Reefs
The habitat of deep-water corals, also known as cold-water corals, extends to deeper, darker parts of the oceans than tropical corals, ranging from near the surface to the abyss, beyond 2,000 metres ... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
September 1 · 7 min
Naturefile - Harbour Seals
The harbor seal, also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
September 1 · 7 min
Naturefile - Raven
Ravens are highly intelligent birds known for problem solving and social behavior. Some species can mimic sounds, including human speech. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
September 1 · 6 min
Naturefile -Knappweed
This is a very well-known perennial which grows in abundance in a wide variety of habitats owing to its very efficient seed dispersal method, being wind spread on tiny parachutes. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
July 25 · 7 min
Naturefile - Poppies
Poppies are colorful flowering plants with delicate, paper-like petals that grow as annuals, biennials, or perennials. Key varieties include the red corn poppy, the opium poppy, and the large oriental poppy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
July 18 · 7 min
Naturefile - Harbour Porpoise
The Harbour Porpoise is found in the northern latitudes of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans mainly in the continental margins. It is the smallest cetacean found in Irish waters. These porpoises are small cetaceans approximately 1.4 to 1.9 metres long when fully grown. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
June 13 · 8 min
Naturefile - Frog Hoppers
Have you ever wondered what makes those little balls of froth, popularly known as “cuckoo spit”, that you find on plant stems during the summer? Blow gently on the froth and you’ll find your answer. Inside the frothy mass you’ll find one or more yellow-green insect nymphs See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
June 6 · 5 min
Naturefile - Shieldbugs
Ireland’s shieldbugs and other related bugs are members of the Order Hemiptera which includes aphids and planthoppers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
May 30 · 10 min
Naturefile - Peregrine falcon
The peregrine falcon is Ireland's most impressive bird of prey and the fastest animal on earth, capable of diving at speeds exceeding 300 km/h to hunt mid-air. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
May 23 · 6 min
Naturefile - Sea Beet
This is a fleshy, dark green perennial which grows in large clumps in coastal habitats such as shingle, salt-marsh margins, old sea walls and grasslands. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
May 16 · 6 min
Naturefile - Golden Plover
The Golden Plover is a summer visitor from France and Iberia and a winter visitor from Iceland. They often feed alongside Lapwing and Black-headed Gulls. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
May 2 · 6 min
Naturefile - Primroses
Primroses were prized plants for those in Ireland who brewed their own cures and concoctions in days gone by. Primroses were widely used as remedies for muscular aches and pains, rheumatism, paralysis and gout. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
April 25 · 9 min
Naturefile - chiffchaff
The common chiffchaff, or simply the chiffchaff, is a common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds in open woodlands throughout northern and temperate Europe and the Palearctic. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
April 18 · 6 min
Naturefile - Snails
From garden snails to rare woodland snails and tincy tiny sand dune specialists, Ireland is a haven for snails. Integral to almost every food web, though often overlooked, this week's Nature File looks at the role of snails in our hedges, woods, fens and fields. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
April 11 · 6 min
Naturefile - Meadow Pipit
Once a pair of pipits have gone to the trouble of making a nest and laying their perfect eggs therein, along comes cuckoo to lay her own little troublemaker in among the pipit eggs. Explore the ecology and the folklore of Meadow Pipits in this week’s Nature File. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
April 4 · 7 min
Naturefile 'New Series' - Woodland Wildflowers
Nature File returns to the airwaves this week, celebrating the blossoming of woodland wildflowers. White flowered wood-sorrel and wood anemone; glistening yellow lesser celandine and of course, violet coloured violets and bluebells, all making the most of April. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Oct 25, 2025 · 8 min
Naturefile - Spiders
Spiders found in Ireland include 583 unique species. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Showing 1–20 of 27 episodes