freshwater
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does include ...
lake in the north midlands of Ireland. It is located on the borders of Counties
Longford
Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 10,008 according to the 2016 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meet ...
,
Westmeath
"Noble above nobility"
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Ireland
, subdivision_type1 = Province
, subdivision_name1 =
, subdivis ...
and
Cavan
Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road that links Dublin (to the south) with Enniskillen, Bally ...
. Lough Kinale forms part of the River Inny. The lake's inflow is from
Lough Sheelin
Lough Sheelin (), in standard Irish ''Loch Síleann'', is a limestone freshwater lough (lake) in central Ireland. The lake is a part of the River Inny course, and ultimately of the Shannon system.
Geography and geology
Lough Sheelin lies at ...
and the outflow is to
Lough Derravaragh
Lough Derravaragh ( ga, Loch Dairbhreach) is a lake in County Westmeath, Ireland, north of Mullingar between Castlepollard, Crookedwood and Multyfarnham.
Lough Derravaragh sits on the River Inny which flows from Lough Sheelin on its way t ...
. The neighbouring (but much smaller) Derragh Lough is also connected by a river to Lough Kinale.
Geography
Lough Kinale measures about long and wide. The majority of the lake is in County Longford. The lake lies about east of
Granard
Granard () is a town in the north of County Longford, Ireland, and has a traceable history going back to AD 236. It is situated just south of the boundary between the watersheds of the Shannon and the Erne, at the point where the N55 nation ...
. It is situated downstream from
Lough Sheelin
Lough Sheelin (), in standard Irish ''Loch Síleann'', is a limestone freshwater lough (lake) in central Ireland. The lake is a part of the River Inny course, and ultimately of the Shannon system.
Geography and geology
Lough Sheelin lies at ...
in the upper part of the catchment area of the River Inny, a main tributary of the
River Shannon
The River Shannon ( ga, Abhainn na Sionainne, ', '), at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of the island of Ireland.
The Shan ...
. A smaller lake, Lough Derragh, is linked to the outflow of the Inny River and Lough Kinale. It is a very shallow lake, with a maximum depth of around . There are two parts, almost separated by a central swampy area. The margins of the lake have several reed beds, interspersed with calcium-rich marsh dominated by small sedges. The surrounding land has boggy areas, some of which have been converted to coniferous plantations. The water quality is variable, sometimes suffering from run-off of nutrients from agricultural land. At one time the lake was a trout fishery.
Natural history
Lough Kinale is a noted
coarse fishing
In Britain and Ireland, coarse fishing (, ) refers to angling for rough fish, which are fish species traditionally considered undesirable as a food or game fish. Freshwater game fish are all salmonids — most particularly salmon, trout and cha ...
destination with fish species including
pike
Pike, Pikes or The Pike may refer to:
Fish
* Blue pike or blue walleye, an extinct color morph of the yellow walleye ''Sander vitreus''
* Ctenoluciidae, the "pike characins", some species of which are commonly known as pikes
* ''Esox'', genus of ...
.
Lough Kinale is part of the Lough Kinale and Derragh Lough Special Protected Area (SPA). This is an important site for overwintering wildfowl, especially
mute swan
The mute swan (''Cygnus olor'') is a species of swan and a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Eurosiberia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is an introduced species in North America, home ...
,
pochard
Pochard is a common name used for several species of diving ducks:
*Four species in the genus ''Aythya'':
** Common pochard, ''Aythya ferina''
** Baer's pochard, ''Aythya baeri''
** Ferruginous pochard, ''Aythya nyroca''
** Madagascar pochard, '' ...
and
tufted duck
The tufted duck or tufted pochard (''Aythya fuligula'') is a small diving duck with a population of close to one million birds, found in northern Eurasia. The scientific name is derived from Ancient Greek '' aithuia'', an unidentified seabird ment ...
. The
Eurasian coot
The Eurasian coot (''Fulica atra''), also known as the common coot, or Australian coot, is a member of the rail and crake bird family, the Rallidae. It is found in Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and parts of North Africa. It has a slaty-bla ...
is found here as well as smaller numbers of
great crested grebe
The great crested grebe (''Podiceps cristatus'') is a member of the grebe family of water birds noted for its elaborate mating display.
Taxonomy
The great crested grebe was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in t ...
,
little grebe
The little grebe (''Tachybaptus ruficollis''), also known as dabchick, is a member of the grebe family of water birds. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''takhus'' "fast" and ''bapto'' "to sink under". The specific ''ruficollis'' is from Lati ...
and mallard. The birds fly back and forth between this lake and the much larger Lough Sheelin.
{{Reflist, refs =
{{cite web , url = http://www.logainm.ie/en/103005 , title = Loch Cinnéile/Lough Kinale , work =
Placenames Database of Ireland
The Placenames Database of Ireland ( ga, Bunachar Logainmneacha na hÉireann), also known as , is a database and archive of place names in Ireland. It was created by Fiontar, Dublin City University in collaboration with the Placenames Branch of t ...
Dublin City University
Dublin City University (abbreviated as DCU) ( ga, Ollscoil Chathair Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a university based on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. Created as the ''National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin'' in 1975, it enrolled its f ...
, access-date = 27 December 2015{{Google maps , url = https://www.google.com/maps/place/Lough+Kinale,+Ireland/@53.7743555,-7.4173424,14z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x485dde015d729509:0xfdd866f7813cbb7?hl=en , title = Lough Kinale , access-date = 27 December 2015{{cite report , last1 = Free , first1 = Gary , last2 = Little , first2 = Ruth , last3 = Tierney , first3 = Deirdre , last4 = Donnelly , first4 = Karol , last5 = Caroni , first5 = Rossana , name-list-style = amp , url = https://www.epa.ie/publications/research/water/Final-Report-(2000-FS1-M1).pdf#page=18 , title = A Reference Based Typology and Ecological Assessment System for Irish Lakes , date = 2006 , pages = 12 , publisher =
Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland)
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for protecting and improving the environment as a valuable asset for the people of Ireland. It operates independently under the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications.
H ...
, access-date = 12 October 2022{{cite web , url = http://www.npws.ie/sites/default/files/protected-sites/synopsis/SY004061.pdf , title = Lough Kinale and Derragh Lough SPA , publisher =
National Parks and Wildlife Service (Ireland)
The National Parks and Wildlife Service () manages the Irish State's nature conservation responsibilities. As well as managing the national parks, the activities of the NPWS include the designation and protection of Natural Heritage Areas, Special ...
, access-date = 27 December 2015{{cite web , url = https://www.fishinginireland.info/pike/shannon/finea.htm , title = Finea Angling Centre , publisher =
Inland Fisheries Ireland
Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI; ga, Iascach Intíre Éireann) is a state agency responsible for fisheries management of freshwater fish and coastal fish with 12 nautical miles of the shore. A separate agency, Bord Iascaigh Mhara, is responsible f ...