Keem Beach
Photo of Keem Beach
Beaches - Keem
Welcome to Keel, one of the Blue Flag Beaches along the County Mayo coastline. This small beach is located 10 kilometres west of Keel village in Achill Ireland.
Local History
BIRD LIFE
Some of the more common birds that can be seen at the beach include:
- Cormorants (Broigheall)
- Shags (Seaga)
Waders
- Snipe (Naoscach)
- Lapwing (Palibin)
- Oystercatcher (Roilleach)
Terns
- Common Tern (Geabhrog)
- Arctic Tern (Geabhrog artach)
- Sandwich Tern (Geabhrog dhuscothach)
Gulls
- Common Gull (Faoilean Ban)
- Kittiwake (Saidbhear)
- Blackheaded Gull (Faoilean ceanndubh)
- Great Black-backed Gull (Droimneach mor)
- Lesser Black-Backed Gull (Droimneach beag)
- Herring Gull (faoilean scadan)
Area of Scientific Interest
Keel Machair
This machair plain lies behind a shingle beach and a system of low dunes. The wetter areas of machair support low-growing mats of mosses and liverworts. To the south-east of this plain the hills are covered by blanket bog and heath. This vegetation is unusual for its community of mosses and liverworts known as the Northern Atlantic Hepatic Mat community. On Achill this community descends to it’s lowest altitudinal level in Ireland. On the seaward side, the land slopes steeply to the sea, forming impressive cliffs. These damp rocks support rich communities of mosses and liverworts. The Keel/Menaun Cliffs site is of ecological interest due to the range of habitants to be found there are particularly for the population of Whooper Swans which frequent Keel Lough. The coastal oceanic and montane communities of mosses and liverworts are of international importance.
Storm Beaches
In times of storm, the erosion function of the waves is greatest but it is also during storms that storm beaches are crated. The up rush of water hurls cobbles, pebbles and boulders up onto the shore, usually further inland than the level reached by a high spring tide. When the storm subsides, the deposited boulders remain where they were thrown, out of reach of the sea. During storm conditions, materials is never sorted by size and so storm beach material is varied in size although the stones and boulders are usually rounded and smooth form the abrasive action of the waves and the finer material suspended in the water. The deposited material has usually been eroded from cliffs or rocky shorelines along some other part of the coastline. Deposited material is never sorted by size and so storm beach material is varied in size although the stones and boulders are usually rounded and smooth from the abrasive action of the waves and the finer material suspended in the water.
The Basking Shark
The basking shark, which is the world’s largest fish, is a regular visitor to Achill waters in the Spring and early Summer. These fish are plankton feeders and can measure up to 12 metres long and weigh between 3,500 and 4,000 kilogram’s. This huge fish filters some 400 times its own body weight of water in one hour to obtain it’s food. The liver of the basking shark weight up to 25% of it’s total weight and being rich in oils, was valuable and so has been hunted by man for several centuries.
In the 1940’s a basking shark fishery was started in Achill. The sharks were entangled in nets attached to cliffs at Keem and killed by harpoons from curraghs. The fish were then towed by larger boats to Purteen Harbour where the oil was extracted. The fins were exported to the Far East. Because of oil shortages, after World War II, the fishery flourished in the 1950’s. In the 1960’s and 1970’s greatly reduced catches, partly due to over fishing and reduced stocks, eventually brought this fishery to a close.
The Achill Mission
This Protestant colony was established in 1831 close to the old village of Doogort by Edward Nangle, a young Church of Ireland minister. His purpose was to win over the Roman Catholic population of the island to the Protestant faith. This mission was unique insofar as it was the first ever established among the native Irish using the Irish Language. In 1832, 130 acres of rough mountain land were leased and by 1835 the colony had grown and prospered. A printing house was sep up in the same year and for many years, a steady flow of literature from the colony brought great public recognition and financial support from the rest of the Protestant world. The Mission established schools on the island causing tensions between the established Roman Catholic clergy and the colony. The colony was supported by public subscriptions from England and Ireland and by 1842, the colony had it’s own corn mill, kiln, grain stores, general hardware shop, several large dwelling houses for the clergymen, a hotel and thirty thatched cottages. By 1851, the mission owned three-fifths of the island.
During the years of the Great Famine in Ireland (1845-1848), tensions on the island grew as the missionaries were accused of using the crisis to proselytise the starving islanders. However there is every indication that the mission did everything in its power to relieve distress among Catholics and Protestants, alike. During the 1880s, the tide of emigration, combined with financial difficulties led to the demise of the Achill Mission.
FURTHER INFORMATION:
If you would like to research further information, for example, on tourist attractions or activities within this area, find some useful links below:
www.met.ie (For up to date weather forecast)
Mayo Beaches
Westport Civic Offices
Altamont Street
Westport
Co. Mayo
Phone: (098) 50400
Email: westportao@mayococo.ie
9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.