The Mullaghareirk Mountains (from ) is a range of hills in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

on the borders of

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...

, County Kerry and

County Limerick "Remember Limerick" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Republic of Ireland, Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Ireland, Province , subd ...

. The area is also known as

Sliabh Luachra Sliabh Luachra (), sometimes anglicised Slieve Logher, is an upland region in Munster, Ireland. It is on the borders of counties Cork, Kerry and Limerick, and bounded to the south by the River Blackwater. It includes the Mullaghareirk Mounta ...

(sometimes anglicised 'Slieve Logher'). The highest point is Baraveha (''Barr an Bheithe'') at .Baraveha
MountainViews.ie It is bordered by the Blackwater valley to the south,

Castleisland Castleisland () is a town and commercial centre in County Kerry in south west Ireland. The town is known for the width of its main street. As of the 2016 Census, Castleisland had a population of 2,486. Castleisland was described by one of its ...

to the west,

Athea Athea ( or ''Áth Té'') is a village in west County Limerick, Ireland. Athea has a Roman Catholic church, and is the centre for the parish of Athea, which encompasses several nearby townlands. History The community was dependent on agriculture ...

to the north and the Deel valley to the east. Villages in the hills include

Rockchapel Rockchapel () is a village in north County Cork in Ireland. It is located near the border of counties Cork, Kerry and Limerick. Rockchapel is within the Dáil constituency of Cork North-West. Much of the land close to the village is planted wi ...

Ballydesmond Ballydesmond (), formerly Kingwilliamstown, is a rural village in County Cork, Ireland. It lies on the Blackwater River (near its source in Menganine) on the Cork-Kerry border. The Ballydesmond quarry is an area of geological interest, containi ...

, Brosna, Gneevgullia,

Mountcollins Mountcollins () is a village in the extreme south west of County Limerick, Ireland, barely 100 metres from the border with County Kerry and just a mile from County Cork. The River Feale runs parallel to the village and is fed by the Caher River ...

, Newmarket, Meelin and

Tournafulla Tournafulla, or Toornafulla (), is a village in the southwest of County Limerick, Ireland. Tournafulla is a long single-street village. It has a Catholic church, a primary school, three pubs, a community hall and a GAA pitch. As of the 2016 cen ...

. The Allaughaun River, a tributary of the

River Feale Beach seine fishing for salmon in River Feale near by town Ballybunion, year 1975. The River Feale (''An Fhéil'' or ''Abhainn na Féile'' in Irish) rises near Rockchapel in the Mullaghareirk Mountains of County Cork in the southwest of Irel ...

, rises at the east end of the range.

Stack’s to Mullaghareirk Mountains, West Limerick Hills and Mount Eagle SPA

The Mullaghareirk Mountains form part of the Stack’s to Mullaghareirk Mountains, West Limerick Hills and Mount Eagle

Special Protection Area A Special Protection Area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certa ...

which, although large areas are under commercial conifer forestry, protects

blanket bog Blanket bog or blanket mire, also known as featherbed bog, is an area of peatland, forming where there is a climate of high rainfall and a low level of evapotranspiration, allowing peat to develop not only in wet hollows but over large expanses o ...

, wet heath and dry heath. The area has been designated as a Special Protection Area under the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

Birds Directive The Birds Directive (formally known as Council Directive 2009/147/EC on the conservation of wild birds) is the oldest piece of EU legislation on the environment and one of its cornerstones which was unanimously adopted in April 1979 as the Dire ...

and was so designated to protect the

hen harrier The hen harrier (''Circus cyaneus'') is a bird of prey. It breeds in Eurasia. The term "hen harrier" refers to its former habit of preying on free-ranging fowl. It migrates to more southerly areas in winter. Eurasian birds move to southern Eur ...

. A survey in 2005 found 45 breeding pairs, representing more than 20% of the total for the whole island of Ireland. Other rare birds found here include breeding

short-eared owl The short-eared owl (''Asio flammeus'') is a widespread grassland species in the family Strigidae. Owls belonging to genus ''Asio'' are known as the eared owls, as they have tufts of feathers resembling mammalian ears. These "ear" tufts may or ...

, merlin and red grouse, a species which is now listed as endangered in Ireland. The SPA was designated in 2007 and has a total area of .

History

The Mullaghareirk Mountains were used as a sanctuary by the Rockites, the "followers" of the mythical folk hero

Captain Rock Captain Rock was a mythical Irish folk hero, and the name used for the agrarian rebel group he represented in the south-west of Ireland from 1821 to 1824. Arising following the harvest failures in 1816 and 1821, the drought in 1818 and the fever ...

, in the Agrarian risings of 1821 to 1824, to hide from the authorities.

References

{{Mountains and hills of Munster Mountains and hills of County Cork North Atlantic moist mixed forests