by Jake Dalzell, Hazel Garrett, Catriona Forrest, Wayne Liang, Rosalind Mackey, Denis Pavlov, and Josh Simpson This was a small project we threw together over three days on our Plant Sciences fieldtrip to Portugal. Everyone on the fieldtrip used six different techniques to explore plant physiology and ecology, and each group came up with a research question that could be answered using some of these techniques.

Biodiversity and Climate Change Biodiversity is the variety of all living organisms on Earth, from plants and animals to microorganisms. It is an essential part of our planet’s natural systems and provides numerous benefits such as food, medicine, and ecosystem services like pollination and soil health. However, biodiversity is under threat from various human activities, including climate change.

Polar bears are one of the species most affected by climate change. The primary reason is that their habitat, sea ice, is rapidly declining due to rising global temperatures. As the sea ice melts, it becomes more difficult for polar bears to hunt for their primary food source, seals, and as a result, their populations are declining.

Climate change is a pressing issue that is affecting various species across the globe. One of the most affected species is birds, particularly those that migrate. Bird migration is a natural process where birds travel to different locations for breeding, feeding, or overwintering. The changes in the Earth’s climate have caused significant disruptions to these patterns, causing serious implications for bird populations.

My favourite butterfly, which I first saw during lockdown. They are the most delicate of the white species (Pieridae) found in Ireland and flutter through grasslands in May and June. Taxonomy For a long time, scientists wondered why Wood Whites ( Leptidea sinapis ) were fairly widespread and common in Ireland, when they were so rare in England.

Hemiparasitic plants are those which steal water and nutrients from other plants, but still photosynthesise (so are green). They are an interesting part of the Irish flora, and some can play an important role in grasslands by weakening other plants – particularly Yellow Rattle.

As someone who has been deeply interested by plants as long as I can remember, I have grown to appreciate all the different habitats I come across in Ireland. Each has its own unique set of species, but one that has always particularly caught my attention is our grasslands.

In the nineties, the Belfast Naturalists’ Field Club extensively surveyed the urban flora of Belfast, resulting in a book, Urban Flora of Belfast . Many plants new to Down and Antrim were found, and most of these were new to Ireland as well. This was a three-year effort involving some thirty-one recorders.

Today I went to the BSBI’s November conference in the Natural History Museum in London! I presented my poster on my summer project surveying islands on Strangford Lough, and got to do a 60 second flash talk. It was really great to meet other people who are passionate about plants and learn from them. Read the html version of my poster here. Watch my (very brief!) flash talk here.

03/11/2023 EDIT: actually a rediscovery, this species was recorded in Belfast pre-1930 Earlier this year, I found a species of grass I didn’t recognise, growing as a pavement plant in East Belfast. With a guide I identified it as Polypogon monspeliensis (Annual Beard-grass), a new species for County Down. This species is known from Dublin and Cork, and there is a previous Ulster record from Keady in Armagh.