Machair (geography)

	Email		Print
	Bookmark		Link

Machair (geography)

This article is about a geographic landform. For the TV series, see Machair (TV series)
Machair (TV series)

Machair was a Scottish Gaelic language television soap opera produced by Scottish Television between August 1992 and September 1998.The series was created and developed by Peter May and Janice Hally who was also the storyliner and principal scriptwriter....
The Gaelic word machair or machar refers to a fertile low-lying grassy plain

Plain

In geography, a plain is an area of landscape with relatively high relief, as well as flat. Prairies and steppes are types of plains, and the archetype for a plain is often thought of as a grassland, but plains in their natural state may also be covered in shrublands, woodland and forest, or vegetation may be absent in the case of sandy or...
found on the some of the north-west coastlines of Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is the List of islands by area in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islet....
and Scotland

Scotland

conventional_long_name = ScotlandAlba|common_name= Scotland|image_flag = Flag of Scotland.svg|flag_width = 130px...
, in particular the Outer Hebrides

Outer Hebrides

The Outer Hebrides, comprise an Archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. The local government area is one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland....
. Two distinct types exist:

oth cases, a machair is a former beach

Beach

File:MiamiSouthBeachPanoramaEdit.jpgA beach is a geology landform along the shoreline of a body of water. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of Rock , such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, pebbles, or cobble....
, left higher in elevation than the current adjacent beach following a drop in sea level

Sea level

Mean sea level is the average height of the sea, with reference to a suitable reference surface. Defining the reference level , however, involves complex measurement, and accurately determining MSL can prove difficult....
.

Machairs largely owe their fertility to the fact their sand has a high seashell content- sometimes as high as 90%.

Discussion

Ask a question about 'Machair (geography)'

Start a new discussion about 'Machair (geography)'

Answer questions from other users

Full Discussion Forum

Encyclopedia

Plain

Ireland

Scotland

conventional_long_name = ScotlandAlba|common_name= Scotland|image_flag = Flag of Scotland.svg|flag_width = 130px...
, in particular the Outer Hebrides

Outer Hebrides

The Outer Hebrides, comprise an Archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. The local government area is one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland....
. Two distinct types exist:

A type of sand-dune
Dune

In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by aeolian processes. Dunes are subject to different forms and sizes based on their interaction with the wind....
pasture
Pasture

Pasture is land with herbaceous vegetation cover used for grazing of ungulate livestock as part of a farm or ranch. Prior to the advent of factory farming, pasture was the primary source of food for grazing animals such as cattle and horses....
, subject to agricultural cultivation, which prevails in wet and windy conditions;
The land between a beach
Beach

File:MiamiSouthBeachPanoramaEdit.jpgA beach is a geology landform along the shoreline of a body of water. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of Rock , such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, pebbles, or cobble....
and the area where sand encroaches on peat bog
Bog

A bog or mire is a wetland type that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—usually mosses, but also lichens in Arctic climates....
s further inland.

Geology

In both cases, a machair is a former beach

Beach

Sea level

Ecology

Machairs have received considerable ecological and conservational

Conservation biology

Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction....
attention, chiefly because of their unique ecosystem

Ecosystem

An ecosystem is a natural unit consisting of all plants, animals and micro-organisms in an area functioning together with all of the non-living physical factors of the environment....
s. They can house rare

Rare species

A rare species is an organism which is very uncommon or scarce. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and may be distinct from the term "endangered species" or "threatened species"....
carpet flowers, such as Irish Lady's Tresses

Spiranthes

Spiranthes, commonly called Ladies'-tresses, is a genus of orchids It has a very wide, almost continuous distribution, mostly in temperate zones of the northern hemisphere: Europe, North Africa, Asia, Australia, New Guinea, the Americas and the Caribbean....
, orchids

Orchidaceae

Orchidaceae is the largest Family of the flowering plants . Its name is derived from the genus Orchis.The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew list 880 genus and nearly 22,000 accepted species, but the exact number is unknown because of taxonomic disputes....
and Yellow Rattle

Yellow rattle

Yellow Rattle or Cockscomb is a flowering plant in the genus Rhinanthus in the family Orobanchaceae, native to Europe and western Asia....
, along with a diverse array of bird species including the corn crake

Corn Crake

The Corn Crake , or landrail is a small bird in the family Rallidae.Its breeding habitat is not marshes as with most rallidae, but, as the name implies, meadows and arable land....
, twite

Twite

The Twite, Carduelis flavirostris, is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae.This bird breeds in northern Europe and across central Asia....
, dunlin

Dunlin

The Dunlin, Calidris alpina, is a small wader, sometimes separated with the other "stints" in Erolia. It is a circumpolar breeder in Arctic or subarctic regions....
, redshank

Redshank

Redshank can refer to:*Two species of birds:** Common Redshank Tringa totanus** Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus*Three species of plant:...
and ringed plover

Ringed Plover

The Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula is a small plover.Adults are 17-19.5 cm in length with a 35-41 cm wingspan. They have a grey-brown back and wings, a white belly, and a white breast with one black neckband....
, as well as rare insects such as the northern colletes

Northern Colletes

The Northern Colletes is a species of bee within the genus Colletes. Northern Colletes are solitary bees, though females may nest in what are termed aggregations ? sites where the bees nest close together, but do not form Colony as social bees do....
bee. Some machairs are threatened by erosion

Erosion

For morphological image processing operations, see Erosion 'For use of in dermatopathology, see Erosion Erosion is the removal of solids in the natural environment....
caused by rising sea levels as well as by recreational use of vicinity beaches.

Machair (geography)

Geology

Ecology

Endnotes

External links