In Ireland, Machair sites have various names. The word Machair itself comes from Scottish Gaelic, and shares the same origin as our Irish word maghera which means low-lying grassy plain. Other words used to describe these areas in Ireland are duach, dooagh, dumhca and muirbheach.
The names used vary regionally and in Mayo for example, the widely used term on the Mullet peninsula and Achill Island is ‘sandy- banks’.
Whatever name we use, Machair sites present complex farming systems. Working at the systems level helps to ensure an over-arching view is taken to allow the array of component habitats and species co-exist with farming and other uses such as tourism, which have emerged in recent decades.
