Mesolithic means middle stone age. They were the first people to live in Ireland. They first settled in Mount.Sandel in Co.Derry. They were hunter-gatherers. The main work was hunting and fishing,They arrived in Britain over 9,000 years ago. They hunted animals lile: wild boar and birds such as dove,duck and pigeon. In the river they caught salmon,eel and trout. Sometimes they gathered berries and hazelnuts. They would only live near rivers or lakes. Mesolithic people and Neolithic people are very similar.They lived near rivers, lakes or the coast.Their houses were easily built,they were made out of light branches of trees which were then set into the ground in a circle.