Machairs in Mayo - a rare dune ecosystem.

Northwest Ireland has several areas of rare machair dunes including those stretching from Mulranny salt marsh to Rosmurrevagh peninsula in Clew Bay, Co.Mayo.

Machairs are fertile, low-lying dune areas - a unique form of coastal grassland (described as 'raised beaches' by Wikipedia). They are formed when sand catches in coastal vegetation, such as marram grass. Consequently, the plants gradually move upward, more sand is caught, and the land's surface is raised.

Although little research has been done into machairs, they are known to support a rich variety of species including many birds and insects (such as the belted beauty moth). Machairs also provide habitat for up to 150 species of flower, some of which are endangered and protected, including the Irish Lady's Tresses.

Machairs are vulnerable to erosion and rising sea levels. In 2007, Mulranny village received the inaugural Notice Nature Biodiversity Award, part of Ireland's Tidy Towns competition. The award recognises over a decade of conservation work to protect and restore local machairs. The Mulranny Causeway loop walk provides access to part of the machairs.

• Wikipedia article on Machairs
• Read about the Belted Beauty Moth
• Irish Lady's Tresses Species Action Plan (36 pages, 239KB, PDF).

Rathlin Island yields 28 sponge species new to science

Dr Bernard Picton is curator of marine invertebrates at the Ulster Museum. He is also an outstanding underwater marine photographer.

His team's recent dives in the region of Ireland's tallest underwater cliffs at Rathlin Island, as part of a research programme, have confirmed 128 species of sponges, almost one third of all species known from Ireland and Britain. This includes 28 species that are new to science.

• See Picton's photos on the online Encyclopedia of Marine Life of Britain and Ireland at www.habitas.org.uk/marinelife.

Information derived from another stunning article by Michael Viney in his 'Another Life' column, p9 of the Irish Times Weekend Supplement, 3 March 2007.

Europe’s first Marine Nature Reserve

Lough Hyne, south west of Skibereen in West Cork, was designated Europe’s first Marine Nature Reserve in 1981, thus also making it Ireland’s first Marine Nature Reserve.

This marine lake is both unusual and important due to its extraordinary diversity of species in its relatively small area – over 1000 species in less than 1 sq km. Some of its plants and animals are more commonly found in the deeper ocean. Others are historically of Mediterranean origin. The site contains several rare species including two fish; the Red-mouthed Goby and Couch’s Goby and two sea slug. One of these sea slugs, the 2cm long Facelina dubia, is only found in Lough Hyne, the Mediterranean and one site in the Bay of Biscay.

Lough Hyne’s biodiversity is partly due to its variety of habitats – including cliffs, boulders, gravel and mud slopes which experience varying exposure to waves and tidal currents. The average depth of water is around 25 metres increasing to 45 metres in places. It is fed from the sea by a narrow tidal channel known as 'The Rapids'.

• Find out about the Lough Hyne Interpretative Centre


• Research at Lough Hyne

Almost all the wintering population of Light-bellied Brent Geese

Strangford Lough is a large (150 sq km) shallow sea lough situated on the east coast of Co. Down in Northern Ireland. About a third of the Lough is intertidal - at low tide huge expanses of sandflats are exposed at the northern end. At high tide this area is covered in shallow water.

Strangford Lough supports plentiful wildlife from common and grey seals and porpoise, to horse mussels, sea-anemones, kelp forests, soft corals, sea-cucumbers, curled octopus and sunstars. Burrowing in the finer sands are brittlestar, pelican's-foot shells, and the sea pens. Birds include waders such as dunlin, turnstone, black and bar-tailed godwits, plover and knots. In winter, these are joined with up to 15000 overwintering Brent geese along with flocks of knot, dunlin, curlew, redshank and oystercatcher. The decline of widgeon and arrival of Little Egrets are thought to be as a result of climate change.

In total, over 2000 marine animals and plant species have been found, including 72% of all the species recorded from around the Northern Ireland coast. Of these, 28 are found only in the Lough.

• Lots more information on the biodiversity and management of Strangford Lough can be found at http://www.strangfordlough.org/
• Visit the Castle Espie Wildfowl and Wetlands Centre which forms part of the Strangford Lough Ramsar site.

The world's largest carbonate mounds

Ireland's carbonate mounds, formed when new coral grows on top of dead coral over millions of years, are though to the largest in the world. They are found off the West coast of Ireland and are associated to Ireland's extensive deep water coral reefs.

Many of Ireland's carbonate mounds are now 10s of metres high and cover an area of 100s of sq metres. The tallest carbonate mound surveyed to date is 350m tall. These large slowly forming and spreading structures have accumulated over 3.5 million years of sporadic growth.

The most extensive deepwater coral reefs in Europe

The most extensive deepwater coral reefs in Europe

First photographed by un-manned submarines in the mid-1990s, Ireland's deepwater coral reefs are among the most extensive in Europe, second only to those in Norway.

They are found some 100 to 250 miles off Ireland's West coast at depths of between 600 and 1000m. These peripheral Irish waters provide optimal growing conditions for coldwater-loving corals. Highly productive surface waters yield plenty of nourishing detritus to the coral below, fast flowing currents are rich in nutrients, the temperature and salinity ranges are perfect and there are sufficient hard surfaces to which the corals can firmly attach themselves.

They took thousands of years to develop, growing up to 2mm a year to form fragile carbonate mounds (thought to be the largest in the world) that are now 10s of metres high and covering an area of 100s of sq metres.

The reefs provide a bustling habitat for animals such as sponges, fish, worms, crabs, shrimps and other crustaceans. Being so remote and at such high pressure depth the reefs are fairly inaccessible. There are plans to place permanent observatories on the reefs to aid scientific research.

In mid-2006 Ireland became the first country in Europe to propose formally to the European Commission that four of its coral reef sites be designated as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) under the provisions of the 1992 Habitats Directive. This will make it illegal to perform any activities (such as those involved in fishing, scientific research or acoustic surveying) that may cause them damage.

• Ireland First Country In EU To Designate Coral Reefs (Press Release, May 2006)
• Coral Reefs in Irish Waters (article)

Ireland's coastline

Ireland's coastline measures 1448km. At an average pace of 5.6 km/hr you could walk around Ireland in 259 hours, or 11 days if you didn't stop.