Latest news with #Rosslare
Irish Times
5 days ago
- Science
- Irish Times
Eye on Nature: ‘We saw these translucent blobs on the beach in Rosslare. What are they?'
We saw these translucent blobs on the beach in Rosslare in early July. Can you identify them? Eithne Cavanagh These are sea gooseberries ( Pleurobrachia pileus ), comb jellies, which are in a different classification to jellyfish. They float in the sea, often in large shoals, trailing two long tentacles behind them. Unlike jellyfish, these do not contain stinging cells but rather release a sticky mucus-like substance to entrap plankton. The lines on their bodies are comb rows which contain hairs called cilia. These beat in unison and propel them through the water. We spotted this wee insect nosing round our nasturtiums. Is it a bee, a wasp, or maybe a fly? Enda Scanlon, Co Clare Female marmalade hoverfly, which has no sting. Photograph: Enda Scanlon It is a female hoverfly – the marmalade fly – Syrphus balteatus . This adult is feeding on the nectar produced by your nasturtiums. She will lay eggs among the aphids feeding on the leaves. On emerging, the larva will attack and eat these aphids – each one can eat up to 50 per day. Hoverflies are flies and so they have no stings, but birds – which fear bees and wasps – are fooled by their livery and leave them alone. READ MORE A newt, a native species of amphibian. Photograph: Conor Toland My 10-year-old daughter and her friend found this lizard-like creature on a walk around Ballynafagh lake near Prosperous last weekend. Have you any idea what it is? Conor Toland I know exactly what it is, as will frequent readers of this column. It is a newt, a native species of amphibian. While it may superficially resemble a lizard, it is much more slow-moving, which was why they were able to catch it. Newts have four toes on their front legs while lizards – which are reptiles – have five. Newts have round heads as opposed to those of lizards, which are pointy. They are closely associated with water and are often found around lakes and ponds. These Norwegian wasps are most likely queens. Photograph: Pat Cogan I spotted these hanging around outside the wasp's nest in a bush in my garden one afternoon in July. Are they drones or queens? They are noticeably larger than the worker wasps. I haven't seen them since. Pat Cogan, Cork John Breen, the hymenoptera expert, has identified these as Norwegian wasps – Dolichovespula norwegica – most likely queens because of their larger size and the time of year seen. By July, growth of the colony in the nest has peaked and the queen produces eggs that develop into new queens. These leave the nest to mate and then find a suitable place to overwinter. Norwegian wasps have small colonies (100 to 200 workers) in small nests hanging in hedges/bushes and die out naturally around the end of August. They are unlikely to be a problem and need to be protected as they are not that common. In fact, no wasp species should be a problem if you can stay out of its flight path. Newly fledged baby blackbirds. Photograph: Elayne Devlin We spotted these baby birds earlier in the summer. They were trying to fly over the wall of our garden but couldn't make it. The mother was around but she was very difficult to see. The two babies chirped all evening; eventually one of them made it over the wall, but the other didn't until the following morning. What type of birds were they? Should we have fed them or was it better to have left them alone? Elayne Devlin, Dublin These were just-fledged baby blackbirds that had left the nest and were out in the big bad world learning to fly. You were right to leave them alone. Mammy had things under control and was encouraging them to fly. She was still around the following morning when offspring No 2 finally made it. Please submit your nature query or observation, ideally with a photo and location, via or by email to weekend@
Irish Independent
15-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
St. Mary's (Rosslare) destroy a poor Geraldine O'Hanrahans team by 38 points
Wexford People Today at 04:30 St. Mary's (Rosslare) had a stroll in the July heat on Sunday, cantering past a poor Geraldine O'Hanrahans in Group A of the Whizzy Internet Intermediate 'A' football championship in Samaritans St. Patrick's Park. The Wexford District club took most of the first quarter to find their feet, but it was all too easy after that as they strolled to a 38-point win. While the level of opponent was not what one would expect in this grade, Rosslare approached the contest in the right manner.
Irish Times
30-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Stena Line axes Rosslare to Cherbourg ferry service
Stena Line is to cancel its three-day Rosslare-Cherbourg service, the company announced on Monday. The last sailing will depart Cherbourg on September 29th, arriving in Rosslare on September 30th. The ferry operator said the decision was made following a strategic route review. 'These plans have been developed after an extensive review with the intention of strengthening the company's investment in the Irish Sea, whilst delivering the most efficient use of the company's resources,' it said. Stena Line trade director Johan Edelman said it would work with staff to find 'redeployment opportunities'. READ MORE 'Our priority is, as always, the care of our people and customers,' he said. 'We've already met with our colleagues and over this period of consultation we will be working with any individual affected to consider all options, including redeployment opportunities. 'As we work through this change we will continue to support our colleagues at every stage.' [ Bumper cruise season set to make waves at Belfast Harbour Opens in new window ] Mr Edelman said the company's customer service team will be helping customers who have booked travel after September 'to keep any inconvenience to a minimum'. He added that Stena Line would 'continue to strengthen its Irish Sea network'. The group recently announced investments of almost £40 million (€46.8 million) in its Liverpool and Belfast terminals, as well as the upgrading of the Fishguard port infrastructure. He said the group would increase capacity across the Irish Sea with two new freight vessels planned for the Belfast-Heysham route and an additional freight vessel for the Dublin-Liverpool route. 'Our Rosslare-Cherbourg service is one that we will always be proud of, and we will continue to deliver the same high-quality service over the coming months,' he said.
Irish Times
14-06-2025
- Irish Times
Tusla thinks missing 12-year-old is safe and in UK
A 12-year-old child who went missing from State care in 2023 is thought to be 'safe' in the United Kingdom, according to Tusla . In a statement to The Irish Times the agency said the child, whose whereabouts were unclear on Thursday night, had 'absconded' from Tusla's care soon after arriving into Ireland in March 2023, having indicated a plan to join family in the United Kingdom. Tusla, the Child and Family, later contacted a relative of the child in the UK who 'indicated' the child was 'safe' though no social worker spoke to the child directly. Since January 2023, up to 11th June, 30 children who have gone missing from Tusla's care remain unaccounted for. READ MORE In that time 123 children have gone missing from Tusla's care. Of these 65 have been found or accounted for, 28 have since turned 18 and their files closed, with 30 children still missing. The 12-year-old child is one of among 50 unaccompanied minors – children who arrive into the State alone and seeking international protection – found reported as missing during an inspection of Tusla's Separated Children Seeking International Protection (SCSIP) service The Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa), which inspected the service over four days in January and February, published its report on Thursday morning. When asked whether this child had been recovered safely, by Thursday evening Tusla was still unable to say. In a statement just issued it said: 'The child arrived in Rosslare in March 2023 with three others, including one adult. The child provided contact details for a relative in the UK and indicated they planned to travel there, though the child gave no clear intention to do so immediately. 'The child absconded from SCSIP offices while staff were arranging a placement and interpreters. 'The child was reported missing immediately to An Garda Síochána and contact was maintained with gardaí. The strategy was not convened within the recommended timelines. 'However, this was rectified once Hiqa brought the matter to our attention. This delay has been acknowledged, and systems have been strengthened to ensure more timely responses. 'Tusla acknowledges that the convening of the formal strategy meeting in this case was unacceptably delayed,' the statement said. In general, the agency said, if a child or young person reported missing is intercepted in Northern Ireland, Tusla is informed through An Garda Síochána's co-ordination with the Police Service of Northern Ireland. In its report, Hiqa said data at the time of the inspection indicated 'approximately 30 children [were] missing and remained unaccounted for ... and 27 children had been reported missing at various stages and returned to their placements' In one case, a 12-year-old child had gone missing more than 18 months before the inspection. 'There was no records (sic) of strategy meetings held with An Garda Siochana, or of contact with UK or Northern Ireland counterparts in order to share information in an effort to locate this child since that time'. In another case, where a 14-year-old had been reported missing from care more than six months previously, a strategy meeting was requested by the principal social worker, but this occurred 'five months after the child was reported missing ... and there was no evidence of liaison with counterparts in neighbouring jurisdictions'. Tusla said that while the report identified 'serious risks and challenges', it also recognised 'meaningful progress made since the previous inspection in November 2023. 'Tusla remains concerned for the welfare of any child missing from its care. The Agency maintains active engagement with An Garda Síochána and continues all possible efforts to contact and trace missing young people,' it said. The agency said children who went missing from the SCSIP service were predominantly 16 and 17-year-old males, from countries such as Afghanistan, Somalia, and Ukraine. 'Some communicate their intention to travel to the UK or other EU countries to join family members or relatives and indicate it was never their intention to stay in Ireland. 'In a small number of cases, they contact the service after absconding to confirm their wellbeing but do not disclose their location. Where a young person's location cannot be formally verified, they remain listed as missing with An Garda Síochána. Once they turn 18 years old, Tusla formally closes their case, but they remain under Garda missing person protocols.'
