BIRM-166’s Sedgewater
Archived: 21 September 2026
Although 30,941 BCE cannot be dated precisely, it lies within a broad MIS 3 interval represented by Derryvree, County Fermanagh. Freshwater sediments beneath later glacial till preserve pollen, plants, mosses and insects indicating open, cold, sedgy tundra wetland with pools, rather than forest. Castlepook Cave, County Cork, contains a mixed Ice Age fauna including reindeer, mammoth, giant deer and predators, demonstrating intermittent ecological connections with north-west Europe. A marked reindeer femur may record stone-tool butchery and possible human presence, but lacks secure context or corroborating settlement evidence. Ireland’s record remains one of unstable climate, shifting ice, evidence and archaeological uncertainty.