Wild Dublin: Deer, Brent Geese and the Bay

The natural side of Dublin, from the wild fallow deer of Phoenix Park and the brent geese that winter on North Bull Island, a UNESCO biosphere, to the cliff path of Howth Head and the bay, with a directory of the parks in our guide.

Dublin is a capital on a bay, with a royal deer park at its western edge. In the Phoenix Park, a herd of wild fallow deer has lived since the 1660s; out in Dublin Bay, North Bull Island, a UNESCO biosphere, welcomes thousands of brent geese each winter after their flight from Arctic Canada.

This is a short, honest guide to Dublin's natural side: the park, the bay and the headlands, all within reach by bus, bike or DART. Wrap up for the wind off the sea, and bring binoculars.

Dublin's deer have roamed the Phoenix Park for more than 350 years.

The deer of Phoenix Park

The Phoenix Park was established as a Royal Deer Park in 1662 by James Butler, Duke of Ormond, who brought fallow deer over from Great Britain; some of today's deer descend from those first animals, more than 350 years ago. The Office of Public Works keeps the herd at around 600 wild deer, and grass makes up nine-tenths of their diet.

The fawns are born in June and July and lie hidden in the long grass while their mothers graze; the rut, when the bucks clash antlers, peaks from mid-October to early November.

Brent geese and the bay

Each autumn the first light-bellied brent geese arrive in Dublin Bay after a migration of some 5,000 kilometres from Arctic Canada, and they spend the winter on the mudflats and lawns around the bay, above all on North Bull Island, off Clontarf. The island is itself a newcomer: it grew from the sand and silt that settled after the Bull Wall was built in the 1820s, and in 1981 UNESCO designated it a biosphere for its rare habitats and species.

On the north side of the bay, the cliff path around Howth Head gives wide views over the water, and grey seals are a familiar sight around the bay's harbours.

Feature: the rut

In the Phoenix Park, peak mating activity comes from mid-October to early November, when the bucks groan, display and lock antlers. It is a remarkable sight, but the OPW asks the public to stay away from the bucks during the rut: with their testosterone high, they become aggressive, dangerous and unpredictable. Keep at least 50 metres away, and never take selfies with the deer.

Did you know? North Bull Island did not exist two centuries ago: it grew out of the bay from silt carried by the Liffey after the Bull Wall was built between 1820 and 1825.

Our advice

Our advice: keep at least 50 metres from the Phoenix Park deer and never feed them anything, including carrots, apples or bread; if you find a fawn, don't touch it, as its mother will return. For the geese, walk the causeway to North Bull Island between October and March, and take the DART to Howth for the cliff path.