Kenmare River or Kenmare Bay ( or , 'the bay of Neidín') is a long and narrow bay in south-west

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. The bay is enclosed by the

Iveragh Peninsula The Iveragh Peninsula () is located in County Kerry in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula. Carrauntoohil, its hig ...

on the north side, and the

Beara Peninsula Beara () or the Beara Peninsula is a peninsula on the south-west coast of Ireland, bounded between the Kenmare River (which is actually a bay) to the north side and Bantry Bay to the south. It contains two mountain ranges running down its ce ...

on the south, with most of its shores belonging to

County Kerry County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...

, except for a small south-western part which belongs to

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

. At its head is the small town of

Kenmare Kenmare () is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay. It is also a townland and civil parish. Location Ken ...

. The bay is a drowned glacial valley with

Old Red Sandstone Old Red Sandstone, abbreviated ORS, is an assemblage of rocks in the North Atlantic region largely of Devonian age. It extends in the east across Great Britain, Ireland and Norway, and in the west along the eastern seaboard of North America. It ...

bedrock. There are many small islands within the bay, including Dunkerron Islands, Greenane Islands, Rossdohan, Garinish, Inishkeragh, Illaunamadan, Sherky, Inishfarnard, Illaunleagh, and Illaunslea (''Oileán Sléibhe'').

Name

Despite its name, Kenmare River is a body of salt water, and is alternatively called Kenmare Bay. The use of the term "river" was historically enforced by Lansdowne lords in order to retain fishing rights, and it was later retained by cartographers. The bay is fed by an actual river, Roughty River (''An Ruachtach''), at the very junction of Iveragn and Beara peninsulas, just south of

. The traditional Irish name of the bay was ''Inbhear Scéine'', from the Irish ''inbhear'' meaning 'estuary', which is recorded in the 11th century narrative ''

Lebor Gabála Érenn ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of Ireland's Taking"; Modern Irish spelling: ''Leabhar Gabhála Éireann'', known in English as ''The Book of Invasions'') is a collection of poems and prose narratives in the Irish language inten ...

'' as the arrival point of the Irish mythological ancestor

Partholón Partholón () is a character in medieval Irish Christian pseudohistory, said to have led one of the first groups to settle in Ireland. His name comes from the Biblical name ''Bartholomaeus'' (Bartholomew), and may be borrowed from a character in ...

Nature and conservation

Kenmare River and the surrounding areas are a sanctuary to wild salmon and a home to many other species, including narrow-mouthed whorl snail, lesser horseshoe bat, otter, and common seal, arctic tern, burrowing anemone, and many more. It is also the only known body of water in Ireland where northern sea fan occurs. Rivers flowing into it, including Roughty, Sheen, Slaheny, and Blackwater, have been known to be abundant in fish, in particular sea trout. A decline in fish numbers was observed in the mid 1990s, and local fishermen communities put the blame on sea lice infestations caused by the operation of salmon farms. Further objections against the establishment of new farms were raised in the early 2000s. Local residents have also been protesting against seaweed harvesting in the bay. Approximately stretching from Kenmare to Lamb's Head on the Iveragh Peninsula, and to Dursey Sound on the Beara Peninsula is now designated as a

Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

(SAC) which are "prime wildlife conservation areas in the country, considered to be important on a European as well as Irish level", even though the proposal to designate was initially opposed.

References

{{reflist category: Bays of County Kerry