Pollnaknockaun Wood

Pollnaknockaun Wood is a national nature reserve and Special Area of Conservation of approximately 96 acres (0.39 km²) located near Woodford, County Galway, Ireland. It is managed by the Irish National Parks & Wildlife Service.

Pollnaknockaun Wood
Pollnaknockaun Wood Location of Pollnaknockaun Wood in Ireland
Type	National
Location	near Woodford, County Galway
Coordinates	53°03′47″N 8°23′17″W
Area	96 acres (38.85 ha)
Operated by	National Parks and Wildlife Service (Ireland)
Status	Open all year

Features

Pollnaknockaun Wood was legally protected as a national nature reserve by the Irish government in 1983.[1] It is also a Special Area of Conservation for its old sessile oak woodland.[2][3]

Pollnaknockaun Wood is a semi-natural woodland, which along with Derrycrag and Rosturra Wood, represent fragments of the previously extensive oak and ash forests which dominated the local landscape for hundreds of years.[4][5] The geology of the site is old red sandstone. Parts of the wood were felled in the 1930s and 1940s and replanted with commercial conifers. Most of these trees have now been removed, and the old woodland allowed to regenerate. There is a variety of fauna including jays and fallow deer.[6]

References

1. "S.I. No. 377/1983 - Nature Reserve (Pollnaknockaun Wood) Establishment Order, 1983". electronic Irish Statute Book. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
2. "Pollnaknockaun Wood Nature Reserve SAC". National Parks & Wildlife Service. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
3. "EUNIS -Site factsheet for Pollnaknockaun Wood Nature Reserve SAC". eunis.eea.europa.eu. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
4. "Pollnaknockaun Wood Nature Reserve". National Parks & Wildlife Service. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
5. Lough Derg Nature Trail (PDF). Tipperary County Council. pp. 42–43. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
6. "Appropriate Assessment of Material Alterations to the Draft Portumna Local Area Plan 2016-2022 Natura Impact Report" (PDF). Galway County Council. Retrieved 27 August 2020.