Dublin

Dublin is located on the central east coast of Ireland in the province of Leinster. County Dublin, or more correctly today the Dublin Region, is the area that contains the city of Dublin, the capital and largest city of the state of Ireland as well as the largest city on the island of Ireland; and the modern counties of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin. The city is situated at the mouth of the River Liffey and encompasses a land area of approximately 115 km² (44 square miles) and the old county covers 922 km² (356 square miles). It has almost 1.5 million inhabitants more than a quarter of the republics people, 90% of whom live in the city and its suburbs. It is bordered by a low mountain range to the south and surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west. It has borders with three other counties, Meath to the north and west, Kildare to the west and Wicklow to the south.

The Liffey divides the city in two between the Northside and the Southside. Each of these is further divided by two lesser rivers – the River Tolka running southeast into Dublin Bay, and the River Dodder running northeast to the mouth of the Liffey. Two further water bodies – the Grand Canal on the southside and the Royal Canal on the northside – ring the inner city on their way from the west and the River Shannon. The River Liffey bends at Leixlip from a northeasterly route to a predominantly eastward direction, and this point also marks the transition to urban development from more agricultural land usage.

River Liffey – ©Dave Meier CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Dublin is a topographically varied region. The city centre is generally very low-lying, and many areas of coastal Dublin are at or near sea-level. In the south of the county, the topography rises steeply from sea-level at the coast to over 500 metres (1,600 ft) in just a few kilometres. This natural barrier has resulted in densely populated coastal settlements in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown and westward urban sprawl in South Dublin. In contrast, Fingal is generally rural in nature and much less densely populated than the rest of the county. Consequently, Fingal is significantly larger than the other three local authorities and covers about 49.5% of County Dublin’s land area. Fingal is also perhaps the flattest region in Ireland, with the low-lying Naul Hills rising to a maximum height of just 176 metres (577 feet).

Dublin is bounded to the south by the Wicklow Mountains. Where the mountains extend into County Dublin, they are known locally as the Dublin Mountains. Forest cover extends to over 6,000 hectares (15,000 acres) within the county, nearly all of which is located in the Dublin Mountains. With just 6.5% of Dublin under forest, it is one of the least forested counties in Ireland.

Skerries Islands – ©Kent Wang CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

In contrast with the Atlantic Coast, the east coast of Ireland has relatively few islands. County Dublin has one of the highest concentrations of islands on the Irish east coast. Colt Island, St. Patrick’s Island, Shenick Island and numerous smaller islets are clustered off the coast of Skerries, and are collectively known as the “Skerries Islands Natural Heritage Area”. Further out lies Rockabill, which is Dublin’s most isolated island, at about 6 kilometres offshore. Lambay Island, at 250 hectares (620 acres), is the largest island off Ireland’s east coast and the easternmost point of County Dublin. Lambay supports one of the largest seabird colonies in Ireland and, curiously, also supports a population of non-native Red-necked wallabies. To the south of Lambay lies a smaller island known as Ireland’s Eye. Bull Island is a man-made island lying roughly parallel to the shoreline which began to form following the construction of the Bull Wall (1825). The island is still growing and is currently 5 kilometres long and 0.8 kilometres wide and is designated a UNESCO biosphere.

Similar to much of the rest of northwestern Europe, Dublin experiences a maritime climate with cool summers, mild winters, and a lack of temperature extremes. There are many green-spaces around the city, and Dublin City Council manages over 1,500 hectares (3,700 acres) of parks. Public parks include the Phoenix Park, Herbert Park and St Stephen’s Green. The Phoenix Park is about 3 km (2 miles) west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its 16-kilometre (10 mile) perimeter wall encloses 707 hectares (1,750 acres), making it one of the largest walled city parks in Europe. It includes large areas of grassland and tree-lined avenues, and since the 17th century has been home to a herd of wild Fallow deer.

Birding Dublin

The Wicklow Mountains National Park stretches across almost 23,000 hectares south of Dublin within east reach of the city.  It supports a number of important habitat types, ranging from blanket bog and oak woodland to corrie lakes and old mine workings. Wet and dry heath, blanket bog and upland grassland are the dominant habitats throughout most of the National Park. Small areas of oak woodland occur on the slopes of Glendalough and Glenmalure, near Lough Tay and Lough Dan, with native sessile oaks. On wetter areas, wet broadleaved semi-natural woodlands occur, dominated by downy birch. There’s also mixed woodland, with non-native tree species. Mountain loughs and corrie lakes are scattered throughout the site, often with adjourning scree cliffs. Many bird species live in the Wicklow Mountains. Of particular interest are Merlin, Goosander and Red Grouse, with Whinchat in summer. It also holds Peregrine Falcon, which is the symbol of the National Park and there are Great Spotted Woodpecker, rare summer visitors such as Wood Warbler and Redstart.

Wicklow Mountains National Park – ©J-H Janßen CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Baldoyle Nature Reserve is of international importance as a wintering area for Brent Geese. Waders that winter at Baldoyle include Black-tailed Godwit, Redshank and Curlew. As the tide rises, fish enter the estuary; prey for Great-crested Grebe and Red-breasted Merganser.

North Bull Island Nature Reserves is covered with dune grassland. An extensive salt marsh lies to the northwest and at extreme low tides there are extensive mud flats between the island and the mainland of international importance for Brent Geese.

Brent Geese – ©Ashley Beolens

Rogerstown Estuary Nature Reserve is a sea inlet. The estuary is made up of saltwater marshes, raised salt marsh, wet meadows and riverine shallows and creeks. It covers an area of 3.63 km2 (900 acres). It also supports an internationally important population of Brent Geese and a further fourteen species in numbers of national importance.