Dawn Chorus: Don't miss the seven-hour radio marathon
Set your alarm, open a window, and experience the world as it wakes this Sunday, 3 May.
Perfect for nature lovers, early risers, and curious minds, International Dawn Chorus Day will be celebrated through seven hours of uninterrupted birdsong, insights, and music on RTÉ Radio 1 and RTÉ lyric fm.
Running from midnight to 7am, listeners are once again invited to take part by sharing their own dawn chorus recordings via WhatsApp, whether from a city street, a suburban garden, a local park or open countryside.
At the heart of this beloved broadcast is Mooney Goes Wild, RTÉ's long-running nature series that has, for three decades, deepened our national appreciation of the natural world.
Once again, the broadcast will centre on Cuskinny Marsh Nature Reserve, BirdWatch Ireland's reserve on Great Island in Cork Harbour.
As the sky brightens, ornithologists Jim Wilson and Niall Hatch will follow the unfolding dawn in real time, identifying species as they join the chorus and explaining what their calls reveal about the season, local habitats and the wider environment.
From RTÉ’s Dublin studios, Derek Mooney will guide listeners through the night and into morning, weaving together live reports, audience contributions and expert interpretation.
Elsewhere, long‑time collaborators Richard Collins, Éanna Ní Lamhna, Eric Dempsey and Terry Flanagan will connect from woodlands, wetlands, gardens and coastlines across the country, capturing local dawn soundscapes as each place wakes in its own way.
RTÉ lyric fm presenters Aedín Gormley, Lorcan Murray, Peter Curtin and Ellen Cranitch introduce a musical dimension to the broadcast, exploring how composers and songwriters, across eras and genres, have drawn inspiration from birds and the natural world.
The programme will also feature recordings from the East Coast Nature Reserve in County Wicklow, and Lohja, beside Lake Hiidenvesi, in Finland, in collaboration with Finnish broadcasting partners, Yle.
The Dawn Chorus airs Sunday, 3 May from midnight to 7am on RTÉ Radio 1 and RTÉ lyric fm.
