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Special Areas of Conservation

Bae Cemlyn/ Cemlyn Bay

Designated Special Area of Conservation (SAC)
Country Wales
Unitary Authority West Wales and The Valleys
Centroid* SH331934
Latitude 53.41166667
Longitude -4.511111111
SAC EU Code UK0030114
Status Designated Special Area of Conservation (SAC)
Area (ha) 43.17
* This is the approximate central point of the SAC. In the case of large, linear or composite sites, this may not represent the location where a feature occurs within the SAC.
Location of Bae Cemlyn/ Cemlyn Bay SAC

General site character

  • Tidal rivers, Estuaries, Mud flats, Sand flats, Lagoons (including saltwork basins) (55%)
  • Shingle, Sea cliffs, Islets (35%)
  • Humid grassland, Mesophile grassland (10%)

Download the Standard Data Form for this site (PDF <100kb)

Note When undertaking an appropriate assessment of impacts at a site, all features of European importance (both primary and non-primary) need to be considered.

Annex I habitats that are a primary reason for selection of this site

  • 1150 Coastal lagoons  * Priority feature

    Cemlyn lagoon on the north coast of Anglesey, north Wales, is considered to be the best example of a saline coastal lagoon in Wales. The lagoon is separated from the sea by a shingle bank with a narrow channel at the western end, across which a sluice system was built in the 1930s. Seawater exchange occurs mainly through the sluice and by percolation through the shingle bank, although in extreme storms coinciding with spring tides waves break over the top of the shingle bank. Cemlyn lagoon supports a relatively diverse set of species, several of which are specific to lagoons, including the bryozoan Conopeum seurati, the lagoon cockle Cerastoderma glaucum and the lagoonal mud-snail Ventrosia ventrosa. Cemlyn lagoon is also the only site in Wales where the lagoonal isopod Idotea chelipes has been recorded. A number of uncommon plant species are found within the lagoon, including the brackish water-crowfoot Ranunculus baudotii and beaked tasselweed Ruppia maritima.

Annex I habitats present as a qualifying feature, but not a primary reason for selection of this site

Annex II species that are a primary reason for selection of this site

  • Not Applicable

Annex II species present as a qualifying feature, but not a primary reason for site selection

  • Not Applicable

Many designated sites are on private land: the listing of a site in these pages does not imply any right of public access.