The Nanny

The River Nanny is a steep-sided river plain with areas of mixed woodland along its floodplain. It flows into the Irish Sea at Laytown, a popular coastal town.

The estuary of River Nanny is a very important site for a wide variety of wintering waders and is protected under the EU Birds Directive. It stretches for roughly 2 km inland and is quite narrow and sheltered, making an ideal habitat for waterbirds. Golden Plover, oystercatcher, Ringed Plover and sanderling are some of the species that occur. A huge range of other waterbirds is also present: Brent Goose, Bar-tailed Godwit, Great Black-backed Gull, Common Gull, curlew, dunlin and cormorant.

Gallery

Little Ringed Plover

Copyright Mike Brown

Little Ringed Plover - Copyright Mike Brown

Oystercatcher

This bird is classed as a resident & winter visitor (from Iceland and the Faeroes) - largest numbers in Ireland between September & March.

Copyright Mike Brown

Oystercatcher - Copyright Mike Brown

Cormorants

Copyright Cormac Mac Gearailt

Cormorants - Copyright Cormac Mac Gearailt

The Curlew is classified as Critically Endangered

The Curlew (Numenius arquata) is the largest wading bird in the Europe. It is very widespread, with its range extending east to the Urals and from Scandinavia and Russia in the north. It is easily recognisable by its long curved bill, brown upper plumage and long legs. There has been a decline in its population across Europe which may be due to agricultural intensification. It is resident in Ireland throughout the year. It breeds in damp pastures and meadows, boglands in and some lowlands agricultural areas. Curlews generally winter in coastal areas in Britain, but in Ireland they over winter in inland areas as well. Curlews use their long bills to hunt out worms, shellfish and shrimps in coastal muddy areas. Curlews are among the red list species of conservation concern in Ireland as specified by Birdwatch Ireland and RSPB Northern Ireland.

The Curlew is classified as Critically Endangered -

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