A second population of Europe’s rarest fern has been discovered in Killarney National Park.
The find comes two years after the first discovery of the Kerry Mousetail Fern (Stengrammitis myosuroides) in the park.
A further six of these fern plants were found this month in a very remote woodland in the uplands of the National Park, over 4km from the previously known location.
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The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) believe this species arrived in Ireland without human intervention, with the most likely explanation being that its tiny spores travelled across the Atlantic on the wind.