FAQs

Our biodiversity posters are available through the National Biodiversity Data Centre publication page, through the All-Ireland Pollinator page and through the Explore Your Shore page.

We do not sell our biodiversity posters, but you are more than welcome to bring the pdf to your local printing shop to get a hard copy.

We hope you enjoy them!

You can purchase all our swatches and other identification guides on https://shop.biodiversityireland.ie/

We accept card, PayPal and bank transfer payments.

If you are unsure what species you have there are a few different things that you can do:

• Try your best to identify the species yourself and try not to hastily post photos up of your mystery species online.
• Refer to local or regional guides. Learning to identify species takes time to learn terminology but by going through guides, it’ll benefit you in the long run.
  • Consider purchasing some of our identification guides available through our online shop
  • Refer to the National Biodiversity Data Centre resources
• Try posting on an online forum, Facebook has lots of groups dedicated to species identification such as Insects/Inverts of Ireland and Moths Ireland

The verification and validation of biological records is extremely important so that the record can be considered correct and trustworthy. It is only after this validation process has taken place that records are uploaded from the Citizen Science Portal onto Biodiversity Maps.

Records which are entered through the Citizen Science Portal go through a verification and validation process. The exact process is dependent on the taxonomic group that is being validated, however there are a number of universal processes in place.

There are 4 pieces of information that are always required for a biological record to be considered valid, this information is collected during submission. These are sometimes known as the 4 W’s:

Who: The name of the recorder who made the observation, it’s important to have a full name associated with a record. A valid e-mail address is also required to submit records also and is very important to have in case the validator needs to confirm or question any record details.

What: The name of the species you recorded. It’s really important to be certain of identification before entry onto our system. If you are not sure or have no idea what species you are looking at, you can always ask for assistance with the identification. The Citizen Science Portal has dedicated recording forms for many of the major taxonomic groups and additional surveys run or hosted by the National Biodiversity Data Centre. If you cannot find a particular recording form, then please try the “Other Species” form

Where: There are two pieces of information collected here also, the site name and the spatial reference of the record. It is important to be as accurate as possible when filling in this information. Thankfully using either the Citizen Science Web Portal or the Biodiversity Data Capture App you can easily get the spatial reference by choosing your location on the large map of Ireland or through the GPS/Location feature on your phone. This allows us to be able to plot the records and create distribution maps for all the species found in Ireland.

When: The date when you made your observation. This is another very important piece of information for a biological record. It is important to make sure if you are entering a record from a previous time to change the date on the online recording form, similarly the Biodiversity Data Capture App can only be used for “Live” recording and records cannot be submitted through it retrospectively.

The pieces of information listed above are needed to have a valid biological record. Even from just the information above a validator would be able to rule out certain species (outside its geographic distribution or flight period) or potentially flag a record to request more information.

For particular taxonomic groups the validator may request that other pieces of information are also mandatory. A photo of the species you are recording is extremely useful and something we encourage all our recorders to try and include. While it is not always possible to achieve this, a photo showing all of the species or a particular feature is very helpful. Do not worry if your photo is not amazing quality, just try to have it in focus, a record shot is exactly that, one to help confirm the identity of the species and validate the record.

The signage templates and many other resources can be found on the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan website.

The signage templates can be brought to your local printing shop to be printed on weather-proof material making the sign suitable for outdoor use.

The All-Ireland Pollinator Plan does not recommend that you sow wildflower seed.

Instead we recommend that you reduce your mowing.
This is for a few reasons:

• You will achieve a higher biodiversity value by reducing your mowing.
• You will often be surprised at what is waiting to flower when given the right conditions.
• Sowing wildflower seed is often very expensive, especially in large areas and there is no guarantee that the wildflower seed will flower due to local conditions.
• Studies have shown that many wildflower seed mixes contain non-native species, despite what the packet says, and can inadvertently introduce invasive species. Even native species may be imported, and will not be as valuable to your local pollinators as the naturally occurring wildflowers they have evolved alongside.
• Reducing mowing and removing grass cuttings when you mow lowers the soil fertility over time. This helps local wildflowers pop up naturally over time and be of much greater benefit to biodiversity.

We have various blogs relating to why we do not recommend sowing wildflower seed:

Why I don’t plant wildflower seed – Dr. Úna FitzPatrick

Spreading seeds of doubt – fake ‘wildflower’ mixes – Dr. Noeleen Smyth

Why ‘wildflower seed’ is a prickly issue – Prof. Yvonne Buckley

Don’t mow, let it grow – and amazing things will happen! – Dr. Úna FitzPatrick

Why we don’t recommend wildflower seed mixes

To find out more, see our videos on creating natural meadows through reduced mowing:

Creating meadows for biodiversity

Top tips for creating a wildflower meadow

Unfortunately, the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan does not have the funding for the printing or distribution of hard copy resources.

You may be able to request hard copies of resources through your local heritage officer, however, it is not guaranteed that they will have them in stock.

All electronic copies of resources can be found through https://pollinators.ie/resources/

The AIPP is a simple, no-cost/low-cost evidence-based framework, to begin, or build on, an action-based pollinator-biodiversity journey on your site(s).

Aligned with ISO14001:2005 and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and nationally data-mapped, large business, SME, microenterprise, throughout the island can fluidly integrate the AIPP within their sustainability goals. See who’s already taking actions under the plan: List of business supporters

To find out more/sign up: Businesses » All-Ireland Pollinator Plan (pollinators.ie)