Lough Hyne

Ireland’s first Marine Nature Reserve is home to a huge variety of life, including bioluminescent phytoplankton.

Probably a former freshwater lake, Lough Hyne is a marine lake close to the town of Skibbereen, West Cork. The lake is regularly fed by the ocean through tidal waves that create a small creek in the southern part of Lough Hyne.

The unusually (for Ireland) warm seawater generated an environment which sustains a huge variety of life of both plants and animals. Due to this peculiarity, the lake attracted the first scentifica investigation in 1886, when Rev. William Spottswood Green discovered the presence of the purple sea urchin. Scentific investigation continued in the following century and, to this days, Lough Hyne remains a very important center for ecological research.

During the warmer months of summer, the lake is also home to a bioluminscent phytoplankton, which can be observed while kayaking by night through the waters of the lake.