Pictured: Two starlings (Druid, Sturnus vulgaris), by Derek Griffin, Portarlington, Co. Laois (Merit Board Runner-up)

SEE: Online gallery of finalists and runners up: rte.ie/eyeonnature

RTÉ and the National Botanic Gardens of Ireland with the Office of Public Works present the final 12 chosen images in the Eye on Nature – Ireland’s national wildlife photography – competition.

An online gallery featuring the 12 finalists’ photographs along with a further eight runner-up images is launched today. Derek Mooney will be live in the RTÉ Cork studio with Maura Derrane and Dáithí Ó’ Sé this afternoon to talk about a selection of the finalists’ photos and he will give further details on the online gallery.

This year’s competition was launched in January 2022 on Mooney Goes Wild on RTÉ Radio 1 and Today on RTÉ One and celebrates the flora and fauna of our island. It received an overwhelming response with more than 3,000 entries.

The judging panel are Dr Matthew Jebb (Director, National Botanic Gardens), Anne Sommerfield (award-winning filmmaker) and Mike Brown (award-winning wildlife photographer.) They narrowed 100 photos down to the final 12 images. These photographs represent the rich natural heritage that Ireland has to offer, showcasing our island’s biodiversity.

Derek Mooney said: “Most of us only ever catch a fleeting glimpse of wildlife. The beauty of these twelve finalists’ photographs is that they enable us to enjoy that moment over and over.”

The 12 finalists and the three judges will be interviewed this Monday 25 April, on Mooney Goes Wild on RTÉ Radio 1. Find out how they got their perfect ‘shot’, the type of camera they used, the time of day they took the picture, and how much effort went into capturing the image of their chosen subject.

On next Wednesday’s Today show, 27 April, Derek Mooney will be in the National Botanic Gardens of Ireland along with the 12 finalists. Viewers will see the images displayed in the gardens. The winner will be announced live during that show and the winning photographer will be presented with the Eye on Nature trophy and a prize of €1,000.

In the coming months, the exhibition will travel to other Office of Public Works sites across the country.

Tune in to Today this afternoon to hear more about the online gallery of finalists and runners up. The overall winner of the photography competition will be announced on next Wednesday’s show.

For more see rte.ie/eyeonnature

The 12 Finalists

• Red squirrel (Lora rua, Sciurus vulgaris) – Jimmy Mc Donnell, Newcastle Co. Wicklow
• Badger (Broc, Meles meles) – Tristan Bane, Ards Peninsula, Co. Down. (originally from Belturbet Co Cavan) – made the final 12 in 2021 competition also.
• Red squirrel (Lora rua, Sciurus vulgaris) – Declan Roche, Ballyfin, Co. Laois (from Wexford)
• Multiple mating frogs (Loscán, Rana temporaria) – Paddy Tubbritt, Avondale, Waterford City
• Red Stag (Fia rua, Cervus elaphus) – Peter O’Toole, Killarney National Park, Co. Kerry
• Mute Swan (Eala bhalbh, Cygnus olor) – Sue Butler, Bushy Park Dublin
• Two Red squirrels (Lora rua, Sciurus vulgaris) – Michael Allen, Kildanogue Woods, Co. Tipperary
• Black-headed Gulls (Sléibhín, Larus ridibundus) – Davor Goll, Poppintree Park, Dublin
• Cormorant with brown trout (Broigheall, Phalacrocorax carbo; Eascann, Anquilla anquilla) – Philip Duke, River Dodder, Rathfarnham, Dublin
• Hare (Giorria, Lepus timidus) – Stephen Dunbar, Glenwherry, Co. Antrim
• Red stag (Fia rua, Cervus elaphus) – Karol Waszkiewicz, Lough Leane, Killarney National Park, Co. Kerry
• Fox (Sionnach, Vulpes vulpes) – Michael Crowley, Fermoy, Co. Cork

Merit Board Runners-up

• Puffin (Puifín, Fratercula arctica) – Christine Taylor, Great Saltee Island, Co. Wexford
• Bar-tailed godwit (Guilbneach stríocearrach, Limosa lapponica) – John Murphy, Carne, Co. Wexford
• Damselfly (Béchuil, Pyrrhosoma nymphula) – Robbie O’ Leary, National Botanic Gardens, Kilmacurragh, Co. Wicklow
• Rock Pipit (Riabhóg Chladaigh, Anthus petrosus) – Gerry Butler, Great Saltee Island, Co. Wexford
• Pine Marten (Cat Crainn, Martes martes) – David O’ Brien, Ballyfin, Co. Laois
• Two starlings (Druid, Sturnus vulgaris) – Derek Griffin, Portarlington, Co. Laois
• Little Grebe (Spágaire tonn, Tachybaptus ruficollis) – Philip Evans, Lough Corrib, Knockferry, Co. Galway
• Black-headed Gull (Sléibhín, Larus ridibundus) – Allan Lynch, Rossmore Pier, Co. Galway