Cliffs of Magho

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View along the Cliffs of Magho

The Cliffs of Magho are a limestone escarpment five and a half miles long in the townland of Magho in Fermanagh. The cliffs face north-north-west overlooking the western reaches of Lower Lough Erne and define the northern edge of Lough Navar Forest, a major plantation managed by the Forest Service of Northern Ireland. A popular viewpoint atop the cliffs is accessed by a forest drive.

The escarpment is formed from two distinct bands of Carboniferous limestone: the Glencar Limestone Formation and the overlying Dartry Limestone Formation. These overlie a series of mudrocks known as the Benbulben Shale Formation. Under the cliffs lie a mostly continuous apron of scree and landslipped material.

The cliffs are a proposed Area of Special Scientific Interest. They are home to the Irish Rock-bristle (Seligeria oelandica), a black moss found on wet calcareous rocks and known only from this site in the whole of the United Kingdom, though found also in the Republic of Ireland.[1]

Since 2007 these cliffs have formed a part of the 'Marble Arch Caves Global Geopark'.

View across Lower Lough Erne from the cliffs

Location map

References

  1. Magho Cliffs: Earth Science Conservation Review (via Habitas)