Athlone man turning stones to unravel underwater mysteries!

Having been a prolific contributor to newspapers and magazines over a long number of years, Athlone-born acquatic ecologist and scientist Declan McCabe is looking forward to the publication of his first book, 'Turning Stones, Discovering the Life of Water' later this year.

The book is a collection of 50 short essays which provide an astounding look at the rich diversity of life that depends on water and was born out of Declan's love of science and nature and his lifelong fascination with life under water.

The son of the late Martin and Edna McCabe from Assumption Road in Athlone, Declan McCabe is Professor of Biology at St. Michael's College in Colchester, Vermont where he lives with his wife, Margaret, daughters Heather (26), Lauren (17) and son, Ethan (23).

He admits that he ended up settling in the United States after he “fell in love” on his first trip there as a student in the summer of 1986. “I had met Margaret that first summer and we kept in touch, and I suppose I had to go back again the following year just to find out if it was more than just a summer romance, and we ended up getting married in 1991 and have been settled here ever since.”

Declan's wife is also a scientist, working in the medical field, so the couple's day-to-day working life is steeped in the whole world of science which they both have a passion for. Declan himself took a somewhat circuitous route on his way to becoming a scientist, gaining his secondary education in the Marist in Athlone and then studying Applied Biology for two years in the former Regional Technical College (now TUS).

After college he ended up getting a job with the Sanitary Services Department of Westmeath County Council through the State training agency known as AnCO. “I used to go around sampling silage pits and sewage plants and it was a great starting point for what I'm doing now,” he says.

Following his move to the United States, the young Athlone man still had a burning desire to learn more about the fascinating world of science, so he completed a Biology Degree in St Joseph's University in Philadelphia after obtaining a student visa, and followed this up with a Masters in Ecology and Evolution.

As well as his day job working in the 1,500-student St Michael's College, which is a private third-level institution, Declan McCabe has been contributing a regular nature column called 'The Outside Story' to New England magazine, Northern Woodlands, and to a number of newspapers over many years and has now amassed over 90 columns. He also hosts a podcase on Spotify called 'Nature Snippets'.

“Scientists have to write lots of obscure papers filled with jargon, and I did that for over 20 years, but in 2015 I wrote an essay which was picked up and published by the editor of Northern Woodlands magazine and I have been writing essays ever since,” he says.

Some 50 of these essays, which Declan says are “completely jargon-free and are intended to be read by the lay reader” are included in his first book, which is due to be published in the United States on July 1 and across Europe in August.

Each essay is accompanied by an illustration, and Declan believes that the work of the illustrator, Adelaide Murphy Tyrol, who also worked with him in his magazine and newspaper columns, is “crucial” to the overall book and serves to make it more interesting for the reader.

While he is delighted to be finally publishing his first book, Declan McCabe says he thought it would “never happen” after the original editor who had agreed to publish it in 2020 passed away two years later. “I had handed more than a dozen of my columns to him at a conference in 2020 in the hopes of having them turned into a book and I couldn't believe it when he agreed to do it,” he recalls, “so I submitted a draft of the entire book to him and then unfortunately he passed away and the deal fell through.”

Not to be deterred, Declan began sending in proposals for the book to other publishers at the rate of “about three proposals a week” and eventually he secured a publishing deal which caused “great excitement” in the McCabe household.

His new book looks at the unique chemistry of water that makes it essential for all life, and examines the rich diversity of life that exists under that water. 'Turning Stones' is a careful look at the mysteries and life that can be found in a river – if people just take the time to look!

As a proud Athlone man, Declan likes to return to his home town as often as he can, and is proud of the fact that his late Dad, Martin, who was a Company Sergeant in the Defence Forces, was one of the Jadotville heroes, and was also instrumental in establishing and running St Peter's Boxing Club in the town.

'Turning Stones, Discovering the Life of Water', by Declan McCabe, will be published by the McDonald & Woodward Publishing Company/Newark, Ohio on July 1 in the United States and elsewhere in Europe in August.