Toad in the hole

Zurich employees recently volunteered at Fernhill Sustainable Park giving their time and energy to a local cause. Some of the small woodland trees that were planted a couple of years ago needed some attention to remove surplus grass growth from their base.

The group donned their rain jackets and gloves, got stuck in and we can happily expect many more trees to thrive because of their great work. 

During a well-earned refreshment break, the group were given a biodiversity talk from the park staff who highlighted the latest Fernhill initiatives such as seed harvesting and the introduction of a pond to the park. Then it was off to meet the goats. These goats graze the fields of the park and by controlling the growth of gorse, play an important role in preventing fires.

There was also an exciting special guest appearance from what we believe to be a common toad. These are not native to Ireland but there have been occasional sightings of these in the Dublin mountains in recent years.

A ‘Toad in the Hole’ campaign was launched in 2019 to report findings and help experts uncover what effect (if any) they are having on native wildlife populations. Our Fernhill toad (affectionately named ‘Baron Silas Greenback’ by its finder Riona Harrison) has been reported in the national biodiversity tracker for confirmation. An unexpected but worthwhile contribution from the volunteering event!