Erris Head

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Erris Head
Ceann Iorrais
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
Erris Head.jpg
Erris Head
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Location County Mayo, Ireland
Coordinates 54°18′05″N9°59′50″W / 54.30128°N 9.9972°W / 54.30128; -9.9972 Coordinates: 54°18′05″N9°59′50″W / 54.30128°N 9.9972°W / 54.30128; -9.9972 [1]
Governing body National Parks and Wildlife Service (Ireland)

Erris Head (Irish: Ceann Iorrais [1] ) is a promontory at the northernmost tip of the Mullet Peninsula, located in the barony of Erris in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. It is a well known and recognised landmark used by mariners and weather forecasters, and is also a scenic viewpoint, with an unobstructed view of the Atlantic Ocean and steep rocky cliffs. [2] It is not served by any road and can only be reached by crossing a number of fields.

Contents

Special Area of Conservation

Erris Head has been designated a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) under the European Union's Habitats Directive. [3]

This dry heath supports juniper, bearberry, crowberry and heather. There are wet flushes and areas of wet heath, and here grow blunt-flowered rush, three species of sundew and the rare marsh heleborine orchid. [3]

Seabirds nest on the cliffs, with fulmars and great black-backed gulls being most numerous, and peregrine falcons and choughs also breed here. In winter, barnacle geese feed on the grasslands above the cliff. Irish hares and common frogs occur on the headland, and grey seals can often be seen at the foot of the cliffs. [3]

Marine reserve

See also

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Mullet Peninsula Peninsula in County Mayo, Ireland

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Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north Mayo consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants. Habitation is concentrated mainly along both sides of Sruwaddacon Bay which flows into Broadhaven Bay, in villages including Glengad, Pollathomas, Rossport, Inver and Carrowteige, and in the Glenamoy area further inland.

Broadhaven Bay Body of water

Broadhaven Bay is a natural bay of the Atlantic Ocean on the northwestern coast of County Mayo, Ireland. The opening of the bay faces northward, stretching 8.6 km between Erris Head in the west and Kid Island/Oileán Mionnán in the east.

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References

  1. 1 2 "Ceann Iorrais". Placenames Database of Ireland. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
  2. "Erris Head". Discover Ireland. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 "Erris Head SAC (site code: 001501): Site Synopsis" (PDF). National Parks and Wildlife Service. November 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2020.