Sand dune - Country Report, Ireland
This article on the sand dunes in Ireland, derives from the 'Sand Dune Inventory of Europe' (Doody ed. 1991) [1]. The 1991 inventory was prepared under the umbrella of the European Union for Dune Conservation [EUDC]. The original inventory was presented to the European Coastal Conservation Conference, held in the Netherlands in November 1991. It attempted to provide an overview of the sand dune resource throughout the whole of Europe including Scandinavia, the Atlantic coast and the Mediterranean.
An overview article on European sand dunes provides links to the other European country reports. These represent chapters from updated individual country reports included in the revised, 2nd Edition of the 'Sand Dune Inventory of Europe' prepared for the International Sand Dune Conference “Changing Perspectives in Coastal Dune Management”, held from the 31st March - 3rd April 2008, in Liverpool, UK (Doody ed. 2008)[2].
Status: Original author, J Patrick Doody & Tom Curtis, original text with minor revisions 2008.
Contents
Introduction
The sand dunes in Ireland have developed over the last 5,000 years and derive from glacial sediment reworked since then by the tides and wind. Substantial accumulations are rare and the largest system is Inch in the south west, with a total area of 1,250ha. [There are approximately 14,300ha of dune landscape in Ireland. The information comes from a variety of sources, including personal communication from Dr. D. Jeffrey (Trinity College, Dublin) and Prof. Bill Carter (Deceased)].
DISTRIBUTION AND TYPE OF DUNE
Sand dunes occur around the whole coastline of Ireland (see Figure). There is very little new sand available for dune building and current development is restricted to reworking of existing sediments. Dune forms include hindshore systems, the most extreme form of which is the “machair” formation found on the north and west coasts (Bassett and Curtis, 1985). Elsewhere, more typically undulating forms occur, many with spits and bars. On the west coast where prevailing and dominant winds reinforce each other, sand can travel some distance inland, and at a few sites over cliffs. On the east coast, by contrast, dunes are much narrower as prevailing and dominant winds are in opposition. Dune sand is both calcareous and acidic depending on the origin of the material and therefore dune vegetation may be grassland or heathland. At some sites, such as Murlough in Northern Ireland, leaching of the surface dune soil has resulted in heathland vegetation.
VEGETATION
Grazing, which includes rabbits, has resulted in largely open close-cropped vegetation and an absence of scrub and woodland. Domestic stock has also grazed sand dune vegetation for centuries. This has greatly influenced its form and composition. Unlike many other areas of northwest Europe, there has been relatively little afforestation of the dune landscape.
Strandline
Ephemeral communities with Atriplex laciniata, Cakile maritima, Galium aparine and Elytrigia juncea are the norm;
Foredune
Ammophila arenaria is the main dune building species. Leymus arenarius does occur but it is restricted in its geographical range;
Dune grassland
Calcareous grasslands can be rich in a wide variety of herbs including Lotus corniculatus, Thymus drucei, Echium vulgare and Viola tricolor. At some sites, rarer plants may be found including a number of orchids, of which Orchis apifera at Murlough dunes on the east coast is one of the more interesting;
Machair
A type of dune grassland develops under circumstances where much of the dune topography is lost due to the action of the strong winds experienced on the west coast. In Ireland, unlike Scotland, grazing predominates, little if any of the flat plain is cultivated. It is rich in species;
Dune heath
Calluna vulgaris and Erica cinerea are the predominant species, though E. tetralix occurs in wetter hollows. Dune heath is much more restricted than the richer dune grassland;
Dune slack
Wet slack vegetation is present at a number of sites with Salix repens forming a major component of a species rich community;
Woodland
There are no dunes with native woodland. However, the reduction in grazing pressure at a number of sites has resulted in the development of scrub, including the invasive Hippophae rhamnoides, at the expense of the richer grassland vegetation. At a few sites, such as Raven Point in the south east, there is some artificial planting of pine.
IMPORTANT SITES
The Southern Irish Government’s Wildlife Service carried out an appraisal of the coastal sand dunes as part of a process of designating Areas of Special Scientific Interest. This list is based on Curtis (1991)[3].
REFERENCES
- ↑ Doody, J.P., ed., 1991. Sand Dune Inventory of Europe. Peterborough, Joint Nature Conservation Committee/European Union for Coastal Conservation.
- ↑ Doody, J.P., ed. 2008. Sand Dune Inventory of Europe, 2nd Edition. National Coastal Consultants and EUCC - The Coastal Union, in association with the IGU Coastal Commission.
- ↑ Curtis, T.G.F., 1991. The flora and vegetation of sand dunes in Ireland. In: M.B. Quigley, ed., A guide to the sand dunes of Ireland, 42-46. European Union for Dune Conservation and Coastal Management, Dublin.
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