Ardailte agus Sléibhte

Ardailte agus Sléibhte

‘Ardtalamh’ is ea talamh le hairde ó 400-600m, agus breathnaítear ar thalamh os cionn 600m mar shliabh. Is iad na príomhghnáthóga atá le fáil in ardtailte agus sléibhte na hÉireann ná bratphortach agus fraochmhá.

The Twelve Bens (The Twelve Pins), Galway
Courtesy of Simon Stewart

Is cairpéad de thalamh fliuch é an bratphortach a chlúdaíonn achar mór talún. Tá bratphortaigh le fáil ar chósta iarthair na hÉireann agus ar shléibhte Chill Mhantáin den chuid is mó. Tugann na mílte turasóirí cuairt ar bhratphortaigh na hÉireann gach bliain.

Is limistéir oscailte de thalamh ar ithreacha bochta iad fraochmhánna - áit le beagán crainn. Tá forlámhas ag fraoch sna limistéir seo. Tá dhá chineál fraochmhá i limistéir ardtailte na hÉireann: ‘fraochmhá fhliuch’ agus ‘fraochmhá shléibhtiúil’.

I measc na ngnáthóga eile in ardtailte agus sléibhte na hÉireann tá srutháin, aibhneacha, lochanna agus coillearnach dhúchasach; tacaíonn siad seo ar fad lena n-éagsúlacht flóra agus fána féin. Bíonn ardtailte agus sléibhte nochtaithe do ghaoth agus báisteach atá thar fóir, agus tá na plandaí agus ainmhithe atá ina gcónaí anseo oiriúnaithe go cliste chun maireachtáil sna coinníollacha seo. Mar shampla, fásann fianna a fhaightear i Cill Airne fionnadh an-tiubh agus fada sa gheimhreadh, agus bíonn na plandaí ar fad gearr chun damáiste gaoithe a sheachaint.

Uplands and Mountains

‘Upland’ is land rising from 400-600m, while land from 600m up is defined as mountain. The main habitats found in Ireland’s uplands and mountains are blanket bog and heath.

Blanket Bog in Connemara

A blanket bog is a carpet of wet ground covering a large area of land. Blanket bogs are found mainly along the west coast of Ireland and in the Wicklow Mountains. Our blanket bogs are visited by thousands of tourists each year.

Heaths are open areas of ground on poor soils with few trees. They are dominated by heathers. There are two types of heaths in the upland areas of Ireland: ‘wet heath’ and ‘montane heath’.

Other habitats found in Ireland’s uplands and mountains include streams, rivers, lakes and native woodlands, all supporting their own diversity of flora and fauna. Upland and mountain regions are exposed to extremes of wind and rain, and the plants and animals living here have cleaverly adapted to survive these conditions. For example, deer found in Killarney grow exceptionally thick, long coats in winter, while all plants are short to avoid wind damage.