Red Bay
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| Unitary Authority | Extra-Regio |
| Centroid* | NW434874 |
| Latitude | 55.114 |
| Longitude | -6.024 |
| SAC EU Code | UK0030365 |
| Status | Designated Special Area of Conservation (SAC) |
| Area (ha) | 966.279 |
| * 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. | |
General site character
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Marine areas, Sea inlets (100%)
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
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The Red Bay site is located off the County Antrim village of Cushendun, Northern Ireland. It contains Annex I Sandbanks slightly covered by seawater at all times which are composed of maerl, sub-fossil maerl, coarse sands, gravels and cobbles. The sand bank is comprised of relic drowned drumlins from the last ice-age ca 15000 yr BP. The Red Bay sandbanks are dominated by both living maerl and sub-fossil maerl and have been thoroughly mapped and characterised as part of this SAC selection assessment. Unique to this site is the presence of large 2-3m high mega-ripples of sub-fossil maerl. These mega-ripples are comprised of maerl, gravel and sands on the crests, and cobbles and globular sub-fossil maerl in the troughs, with occasional sand patches on the slopes.
Annex I habitats present as a qualifying feature, but not a primary reason for selection of this site
- Not Applicable
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.