The Burren also supports a rich animal life. It is one of the best places in Ireland for butterflies, with 28 species in the area. The birdlife is also varied. Skylarks and cuckoos can often be seen on the hills and meadows. Mammals are harder to spot. Badgers, foxes, otters, stoats, dolphins and seals live here but you would be more likely to see a goat or sheep. Seven species of Irish bat live in the Burren, including the horseshoe bat, which is a rarity in Europe. These are just a few of the common creatures that can be found.

Mammals

Feral goats, foxes and hares are the most common mammals encountered in the uplands, with rabbits once common but now much less so. Other interesting members of the Burren's faunal community are the pine marten and the snake-like slow worm.

This is a picture of a pine martin, the most famous of the Burren’s mammals. It is covered in thick, soft fur and has a dog-like head. It is chocolate brown in colour with a yellowish white throat and furry tail. It hunts smaller animals, such as field mice, rats, birds and wild fruit.

Feral goats are easily recognisable in the Burren. With their shaggy coats, beards and swept-back horns, these creatures blend naturally into the rocky landscape.

Birds
Birds like thrushes, finches, larks, crows, kestrel and pigeons are common in The Burren. Many like the cuckoo, wheatears and whitethroats like to pay a visit in the Summer. Can you guess where these birds might spend the rest of the year?

The Burren has lost some of its birds too. The corncrake and grey partridge have disappeared, as has the eagle.

Butterflies
The most beautiful of all the Burren wildlife is its butterflies. Of the thirty or so species found in Ireland, only two are absent from the Burren. Below are just some of the many butterflies.

	Can you remember?
What colour is the pine martin?

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