Report Cover Vol I - Clare County Library

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The County Clare Wetlands Survey Patrick Crushell & Peter Foss 2008 ____________________________________________________________________________________ examples of Blanket Bog (although restricted in extent) identified in recent surveys (Derwin et al. 2004). Clare also holds some of the most south-western raised bogs in the country in the south-western part of the county. For this reason these raised bogs although heavily degraded are of considerable interest (Foss and O’Connell 1991). Fens & Flushes When it comes to Fens and Flushes Clare is certainly one of the richest counties in Ireland for these diverse wetland ecosystems. Although 483 ha of Fens and Flushes have been mapped in County Clare and 117 sites have been reported in the literature, it is very difficult to get an accurate estimate of the resource due to an absence of targeted survey work (Foss 2007). Recent surveys carried out in Monaghan have highlighted the rarity of this ecosystem and also highlighted the absence of reliable information on their distribution and extent (Foss and Crushell 2007 & 2008). Wet Woodland Wet woodlands were sparsely recorded during the mapping process with a total area of only 155 ha, the habitat is likely to be under-represented in the GIS. Unfortunately, the GIS data from the National Survey of Native Woodlands (NSNW) was not available on time to be incorporated into this study. However, some relevé data that was reviewed indicates that a significant number of wet woodland sites have been identified by the NSNW. Coastal Wetlands Coastal freshwater wetlands that occur in Clare include lagoons and dune slacks. As mentioned previously dune slacks are very rare in the county despite some spectacular dune systems being present. These dune slacks are of high ecological interest where they occur, however in Clare some have probably been degraded or destroyed in the past by recreational use, including for example golf course developments. Lagoons are rich habitats for birds and other fauna and have been reported from the northern and southern coastline of Clare. They have been surveyed in the past and the 19 sites reported in the CWS database is likely to be an accurate reflection of the occurrence of this habitat in the county. 51
The County Clare Wetlands Survey Patrick Crushell & Peter Foss 2008 ___________________________________________________________ Figure 7.1: Location of wetland sites throughout Clare, represented as point sources, and labelled according to CWS site code recorded during the County Clare Wetlands Survey 2008. Note: some site locations appear to have two site codes due to multiple designation and therefore duplication in the site database. Furthermore, some sites appear off-shore because the central grid reference of these estuarine, coastal and marine complexes is situated off-shore. For example, the Galway Bay Complex (CWS Site Code: 122) appears off the north coast of Clare although it contains lagoon habitat along the Clare coast. 52
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Report Cover Vol I - Clare County Library

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