1. TERAPROOF:User:rorynoonanDate:02/01/2015Time:12:29:33Edition:05/01/2015Monmonecho050115Page:15 Zone:EE
Monday, January 5, 2015 NEWS 15
EE - V1
RIGHT: Dave Foley of
Avondhu Blackwater
Partnership Ltd, right,
with John Howard of
Rathcormac Game and
Wildlife Club, checking
the plans at the Corrin
Nature Reserve near
Fermoy.
Plans to develop a nature reserve in North Cork
to protect native species and habitats from
depredation are now in their final phase. Yet
the work is by no means finished. Those behind
the project have appealed for funding and
volunteers to come on board to keep it going
By KIRSTY TOBIN
LEFT: The grey partridge
— ‘‘its preservation is
our key aim,’’ says John
Howard, of the
Rathcormac Game and
Wildlife Club.
Picture: David Keane
● TO follow progress at
the Rathcormac Nature
Reserve, or for details on
how you can get
involved, visit
www.rathcormacgameand
wildlifeclub.ie
The Nature Reserve is being funded by Rathcormac Game and Wildlife Club.
Follow its
progress
Nature Reserve will be a huge
draw in the North Cork area
IN 2006, John Howard, of the
Rathcormac Game and Wildlife
Club, approached the Avondhu
Blackwater Partnership, in
Fermoy, with an intriguing
idea.
The club was anxious about falling
numbers in local wildlife populations.
Habitats were being lost through re-
clamation, building, drainage and the
development of the M8 motorway. The
grey partridge was dying out.
Something, they felt, had to be done.
The proposal? A Nature Reserve, to be
located on six-acres of land the club had
bought with their own revenues.
The reserve would focus on conserva-
tion, attempting to protect native spe-
cies and to protect habitats from further
depredation.
“Those six acres are going to be saved
from the bulldozer for ever more,” says
John Howard.
“We don’t intend to bring in any exotic
or unusual species, just native plants
and animals. Particularly the grey part-
ridge — its preservation is our key
aim.”
Avondhu Blackwater, without hesita-
tion, agreed to fund the project to a value
of €68,319.15 under the LEADER Rural
Development Pro-
gramme 2007-2013.
Explaining the
justification for
funding of this
magnitude, Valerie
Murphy, pictured,
CEO of Avondhu
Blackwater, said,
“The reserve will
be one-of-a-kind in
the north Cork
region and, as
such, will be a huge
draw.
‘‘It’s also hugely important to safe-
guard the future of local habitats and
local wildlife populations, and that’s an
ethos we try to embody and support at
Avondhu Blackwater.”
The reserve is a huge undertaking,
sure to yield manifold results. Valerie
sees the benefits of the reserve surpass-
ing conservation and tourism. The re-
serve will act as an education tool for
local schools, allowing students the op-
portunity to see, first-hand, the benefits
of creating an environment in which
endangered species can thrive.
Furthermore, the reserve will serve as
a fabulous amenity in which nature can
be appreciated and enjoyed by all and
sundry.
John, for his part, agrees with Valerie,
but he also hopes that the reserve will
show gun clubs in a new light.
“Game clubs are finally being recog-
nised for their conservation efforts, but
there still needs to be more recogni-
tion.
‘‘We don’t shoot anything that’s rare
or endangered, and every one of our
members is as dedicated to wildlife as
they are to shooting.”
The proof is in the wildlife — since
work on the reserve began, local species
have started flooding into the protected
space, and club members are optimistic
that this influx of wildlife will grow as
time goes on.
Now, the final phase of development
on the extensive project is coming to a
close, yet the work is by no means
finished, and the club is desperate for
further funding, and for an investment
of time.
“While we couldn’t have gotten to the
stage we’re at now without the help of
funding from Avondhu Blackwater, it’s
going to take even more money to keep
the reserve going, so we’re looking for
donations.”
The club is also looking for gardeners
and landscapers who would like to
design an area of the grounds, and would
love for someone to sponsor the place-
ment of covers on the reserve’s three
pools.
The viewing area, standing high
above the reserve, is affording stunning
views over the ever-changing landscape.
And so it becomes clear that the reserve
will very much be an evolving entity.
Entry to the reserve will be granted
free of charge.