WIGEON - MARECA PENELOPE

The WIGEON’s name in the Irish Language is ‘Rualacha’. The Latin name is ‘MARECA PENELOPE’. It is an AMBER listed bird in Ireland.

It is a duck. Females look like female mallards. Collective nouns for the wigeon are;  flock, team, raft, brace, bunch of Wigeons. The Wigeon can symbolise intuition or psychic abilities and is sometimes associated with goddesses of wisdom, self awareness. Out here in the Rogerstown estuary you can hear the Widgeon's whistle throughout the day, it's like a 'wheee-ooooooo', females make a different type of sound, like a growl. Garrett talks about the OPEN SEASON ORDER (The legislation in Ireland for the hunting of certain birds.) The Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981, provides wigeons with protection against being captured, killed or injured, and also makes it illegal to damage or destroy their nests or eggs. The name ‘wigeon’ is thought to be derived from the Middle French or Old French words vigeon, vingeon and vignier, meaning “to whine or shout”, which echoes the sharp, piercing whistle made by males.

You can recap by listening to Garrett’s other HIDE FM podcasts to date by searching HIDE FM on any podcast distributor, apart from Spotify. HIDE FM is a Per Cent for Art commission by Fingal County Council.

Please FOLLOW / SUBSCRIBE!

Send all of your questions regarding this podcast to [e-mail]

What is HIDE FM?

HIDE FM - Podcast is a work of art by artist Garrett Phelan. It takes the form of 28 imagined and performed monologues on 28 birds that are visitors to the Rogerstown Estuary, Lusk, North County Dublin, Ireland. They were performed by Garrett from October 2023 - January 2024 in Millbrook Studios, Rathfarnham, Dublin. They were originally transmitted via an independent radio station HIDE FM during Spring 2025. The podcast is a sensitive exploration of the Fragility of our ecosystem. Garrett explores the status, sound, diet, breeding patterns, movement and folklore of each bird type, with ‘sonic interruptions’ interspersed into the podcasts. They were performed and created to depict viewing birds during the seasons of Autumn/Winter/Early Spring at the location of THE HIDE SCULPTURE, Lusk, Co.Dublin. 12 of the 28 birds he features are on the endangered RED list. 10 of the birds are on the endangered AMBER list and 6 are on the GREEN LIST. The HIDE FM - Podcast IS NOT REAL. It is an ‘IMAGINED, PERFECT’ landscape. Each week we will release a podcast that will focus on one particular bird from the area.

For more information on what we do follow us @thehideproject on Instagram or go to www.thehideproject.com

HIDE FM is a Per Cent for Art Commission by Fingal County Council.

Send all of your questions to [e-mail]