Deserted village
Bill Oddie visits an abandoned village. In Ireland the forests were cleared for farming and for industry, so how come the countryside is so relatively unpopulated now? Well, it's the continuing legacy of the great potato famine of the mid-1840s. Potatos were the principal diet of the population but for two years the crop was ravaged by blight and the result was a human tragedy on a quite extraordinary scale. Something like 1 in 9 people died and vast numbers left Ireland and moved to other countries. Here was, obviously what was presumably just one of several former gardens - the evidence still blossoming magnificently. Bill is just about to sniff a lily and discovers that there's somebody in there before him. It is a crab spider. He's adapted himself to living in a lily by turning white, a superb little ghost.
Duration:
This clip is from
Featured in...
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Nature
Be captivated, informed and inspired by the world's wildlife.
More clips from South West Ireland
-
Mossy woodland
Duration: 01:59
-
Chough country
Duration: 03:52
-
Yew forest
Duration: 01:48
-
Belfry bats
Duration: 04:14
More clips from Bill Oddie Goes Wild
-
Mossy woodland—Series 3, South West Ireland
Duration: 01:59
-
Chough country—Series 3, South West Ireland
Duration: 03:52
-
Yew forest—Series 3, South West Ireland
Duration: 01:48
-
Belfry bats—Series 3, South West Ireland
Duration: 04:14