Conor McKinney
@wildlifeni
Wildlife conservationist based in Northern Ireland, working to give wild things and places a voice. Founder of and .
Check out our new "Living Mural" in #Cullybackey. Designed in partnership with local community celebrates the towns connection with River Main and includes Swift nesting bricks. In partnership with Alpha Housing and our wonderful artist can be found here www.instagram.com/wallartbyale...
#Belfast based artist?? We've launched a call to celebrate the connection of Irish natural & cultural heritage for #Fleadh2026! We're providing four winners the opportunity to win £350 and have their work distributed across the city during the Fleadh. And theres more! 🧵 ⤵️ The top 20..
Deeply concerned about #Belfast Councils ham fisted approach to new playing field strategy Not content with pitting sports provision against music, they now seem to be pitting it against biodiverse green infrastructure (GI). New pitches should contribute to new high quality GI, not degrade it.
Did you see #winterwatch last night? Belfast's starling murmuration took centre stage to the delight of audiences across the UK and those watching at Belfast itself. But did you know we nearly lost it..?
What can we celebrate already as a city? Where can we do better? #WhatIf #BelfastNationalParkCity
Our #Belfast #NationalParkCity workshop is well underway. Attendees are writing a postcard to themselves from 2050. They've been asked: 1) What do you see? 2) What's changed locally? 3) Who's here, and what's their r'ship with nature? 4) How do you feel living here? What would you say?
The conversation continues this week as we hear from local activists who will help steer us towards thinking "What if Belfast was a National Park City?" Come along, it just might be the start of something extraordinary. Register here: forms.gle/dAfCeSb3VaWT... #NationalParkCity #Whatif
Typically a univoltine species (i.e one flight season April to June) in Northern Ireland the Holly Blue butterfly, a protected species, has developed a second flight season, likely due to our warming climate. This one was seen outside its typically associated flight season in Garvagh yesterday.
Digitising our workshop on how we make Belfast a National Park City - outcomes en route! Fab contributions so far: - We're a confluence of past and future - Make natural heritage last as long as built heritage - Make gardens a public good Get involved - email contact@wildbelfast.org.
We're taking our exploration of #Belfast as a National Park City into one of Belfast's best loved meanwhile sites. I'll be joined in discussion with our host Gawain as well as Perla from Sustrans and Lizzy from Belfast Hills to explore a National Park City, what to celebrate and how we can do more
Meadow restoration taking shape at PEC in Botanic Gardens. These are what traditional grasslands would have looked, smelt and buzzed like. Bravo to upsurge project, Belfast City Council and partners. Let's see more of this 👏🦋🐝🐞
Enter our heroes from NI Fire and Rescue Service Belfast Central Station who popped in to lend a hand! A huge thank you to our local heroes who are also playing an important role in Swift Conservation #worldswiftday. You can hear (& see!) our living, singing mural on Bruce Street, Belfast.
It's #worldswiftday and I'd like to share a story with you about our swift mural. Equipped with a solar powered caller to attract swifts to the nesting bricks, we had one issue - how to turn the caller on (>10m high) once the swifts arrived?
Join us at Queen's University on Tuesday 10th June from 10am for a discussion reflecting what if we treated Belfast like a National Park. We'll hear from an array of experts and muse how Belfast can be better for us and biodiversity. Register here: lnkd.in/evrHtZGs
Remember to register for the Planning at Queen's University Belfast and Wild Belfast conference asking "What if Belfast was a National Park City?" E.g. what if schools and universities offered nature rich green infrastructure to encourage ecological awareness and an asset for communities?
What if Belfast was a National Park City? After last year's "Making Space for Nature' conference that's the question we'll be exploring in our next conference on the 10th June with Planning at Queen's University Belfast. What if we had better access to green space?
Belfast is taking part again in the #CityNatureChallenge! We want to put Belfast as high up the global league table and assert our position as a hot-spot for ecological recording. Get involved - all you need is your phone and appropriate clothing ⏬🐝 www.inaturalist.org/projects/cit...
My take on the parakeets in the Waterworks story. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
An ecological baseline must inform any new infrastructure, or any new use of existing infrastructure. We should look to learn lessons from similar opening hours elsewhere. Enhance the existing biodiversity value of our green spaces to offset operational disturbance.
We have experienced the impact of light disturbance on Belfast species (eg starling murmuration). Artificial light at night (or ALAN) can have a chronic and pervasive effect on bats, birds and invertebrates. Lighting must be avoided and dark zones maintained where possible.
We've submitted our consultation for the extension of opening hours (with most of the heavy lifting done by the fab Erin Mckeown). In principle Belfast City Council have our support, we can't expect people to care for nature if they can't access nature. But here's what we're calling for:
Talking about the importance of our urban green spaces today with the BBC. These spaces are the foundations of our urban biosphere. We must manage them better for biodiversity. We aspire to manage 30% of the planet for biodiversity by 2030 but where is the ambition to renature our public estate?
YELLOW RATTLE!!!! First year in new urban house and this is a fine sign that the l(y)awn is diversifying. Tense next couple of weeks to see if more establishes 🤞
Those eyes are on the prize! Prize being a wet summer and some poor pipits lineage.
Hiya folks! We are organising a campaign to win £5k for Wild Belfast. £5k would be a huge deal for us - in 5 seconds you could help us pay for our core costs for *5 years*. Can you nominate us (see link below - closing date 23rd Feb). Thank you ❤️💙💚 animal.movementforgood.com/index.php?cn...
Join us on the 16 February in Victoria Park to learn about the wintering birds there! Book a free ticket at www.wildbelfast.org/events-1/win...
On the Lagan with @barrabest.bsky.social today telling the story of the return of Belfast's starling murmuration at Albert Bridge. You'll see more of us on Barra’s Return of the Wild.
I'm taking part in a Conversations event with QUB on nature in the city. For instance, Belfast has a road map to protect 30% of its area for biodiversity by 2030. To meet it depends on how they manage their green spaces, see alt txt & come along for more info. docs.google.com/forms/d/1Z6f...