Cliffs of Magho

The Cliffs of Magho are a 9km long limestone escarpment located in the townland of Magho, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. The NNW-facing cliffs overlook 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 is a more or less 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 elsewhere in the Republic of Ireland. ^[1]

Since 2007 these cliffs have formed a part of the Marble Arch Caves Global Geopark.^[2]

References

1. ^ http://www.habitas.org.uk/escr/summary.asp?item=186
2. ^ http://www.marblearchcaves.net