Harbour to Headwaters
Aughrim
Ecology Notes
The Aughrim River forms at the confluence of the Derry-Water and Ow Rivers.
Unfortunately, water quality locally has degraded from ‘Good’ to ‘Moderate’ status in recent years. Man-made structures in our rivers such as dams, bridge aprons, culverts, and weirs can be barriers for aquatic wildlife and negatively impact on biodiversity.
Heritage Information
Aughrim is known as the ‘Granite City’, as past quarries supplied material for local houses, several Dublin churches.
In the 1930s, 450 tons of Aughrim Granite was used in building Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral.
Feature Creature: Brown Trout
A Brown Trout can live up to 20 years!
Brown Trout spawn over winter with their eggs needing a constant supply of cold, clean, and well oxygenated water. Excess sediments getting into our rivers can have drastic negative effects on spawning by smothering the eggs and starving them of oxygen.