Carlingford Lough

Carlingford Lough (Loch Cairlinn in Irish) (Cairlinn being shortened form of "Cathair Linn" literally translated as "City of the Pool") is a sea loch that forms part of the international border between Northern Ireland to the north and the Republic of Ireland to the south. At its extreme interior angle (the northwest corner) it is fed by the Newry River and the Newry Canal, which link it to the nearby city of Newry (the Canal continues on towards the River Bann and Lough Neagh; the river, under the name River Clanrye, loops around County Down).

On the northern side, in County Down, are the coastal towns of Warrenpoint and Rostrevor, backed by the Mourne Mountains, and on the southern side are Omeath, Carlingford and Greenore, all on the Cooley peninsula in County Louth.

History

On 3 November 1916 two steamers, the SS Connemara and the SS Retriever, collided and sank in the loch with the loss of ninety-four lives.

Tourism

Carlingford Lough is a popular venue for sea angling and yachting. Lough cruises are now a regular feature on the Lough during the summer months.

Flora and fauna

The northern shores contain mudflats and salt marsh, so provide winter feeding areas for the Pale-bellied Brent Goose, Branta bernicla hrota. At the mouth of the lough are several small rock and shingle islands which are breeding areas for terns, which feed in its shallow waters. The lough has suffered damage in recent years to its natural ecology and biodiversity due to the impacts of a mussel dredging industry.

Ramsar site

The Carlingford Lough Ramsar site (wetlands of international importance designated under the Ramsar Convention), is 830.51 hectares in area, at Latitude 54 03 00 N and Longitude 06 07 00 W. It was designated a Ramsar site on 9 March 1998. It is a cross-border site. The northern shore is in Northern Ireland and includes the most significant mudflats in the lough, and an area of salt marsh. The southern shore is in the republic of Ireland. At the mouth of the lough are several small rock and shingle islands which are of importance to terns. The Ramsar Site lies between Killowen Point and Soldiers Point on the northern shores of Carlingford Lough and the landward boundary coincides entirely with that of the Carlingford Lough Area of Special Scientific Interest and the Carlingford Lough Special Protection Area.

The site qualified under Criterion 2 of the Ramsar Convention because it supports important groups of vulnerable and endangered Irish Red Data Book bird species. It supports nationally important breeding populations of Common Tern. Roseate Terns returned to the site after an absence of six years with two breeding pairs recorded in 1997. It has also supported nationally important numbers of Arctic Tern. It also qualified under Criterion 3c for supporting internationally important breeding populations of Sandwich Tern and of overwintering Light-bellied Brent Geese.