The article’s most striking implication is that Ireland’s Late Pleistocene past is better understood as a patchwork of local environmental windows than as a single island-wide scene. Derryvree demonstrates freshwater tundra-marsh conditions between glacial advances, while Castlepook suggests episodic access for large mammals, yet neither archive securely establishes a continuous landscape or human occupation. This contrast highlights how preservation shapes historical interpretation: what survives may reflect sheltered basins and caves rather than typical conditions. How should researchers balance Derryvree’s ecological evidence with Castlepook’s broader but chronologically mixed fauna when assessing whether MIS 3 Ireland offered recurring opportunities for human visitors?