Nov
29
2015
On 21st October, Ms. Dunne’s and Mr. Moran’s Sixth Year Biology Classes went to Castlecomer Discovery Park.
The Park opened in 2007 and is a non-profit, social-community enterprise. They protect and study some beautiful 80 acres of woodland, complete with two picturesque lakes, which makes it an ideal place to study both land and water-bound animals.
Upon arrival, we were brought into a classroom and given various pieces of equipment and a brief summary of what we would be doing. I came prepared with my pink sparkly wellies, and we set off into the woods!
We were split into teams and first we checked all the Longworth mammal traps for mice. We then used square and gridded quadrats to measure the coverage of some of the plants, randomising our areas of observation by throwing a pencil and then placing the quadrat. During our line transect study, we used various pieces of equipment; a light intensity meter, a hygrometer – which measures the amount of moisture in the air, and a gradometer – which measures the slope of the ground. We had to identify the natural plant life which mostly consisted of soggy moss.
Our next task, which was also my personal favourite, was to capture, identify and inspect the local wildlife! So, armed with pooters and sweep nets, we searched in bushes and under logs for some creepy crawlies. We found snails, millipedes, moths and even a frog. It’s not fun when your teammate decides to put a spider on your shoulder and laugh!
After lunch, we were given a tour of their Visitor Centre, where we were taught about Castlecomer’s rich mining history. We learned about the plant life and giant insects that ruled the Carboniferous Period (359-299 million years ago). They eventually died and were compressed over millions of years to form coal and fossils. We were shown their wonderful collection of fossils but also the appalling conditions the miners worked in.
I thought the trip was very interesting and I recommend visiting again.
(Alexandra Coyne, Sixth Year)
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