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Greenan ASSI

Last updated: 5 February 2010

Site No ASSI 160
Area 1.89(ha)
Declared Date 19/12/1997
Confirmed Date 13/05/1998
County Down
Council(s) Newry and Mourne DC
Keywords Fen

picture of ragged robin flowersGreenan is a basin fen. A fen is a poorly drained wetland area with a permanently high water level at or just below the surface. The complex variety of habitats that can occur within a fen contributes to the rich diversity of plants and animals.
Although small, Greenan has a range of vegetation types, including some notable fen communities and species.
The centre of the area is a mosaic of open water and swamp, with pockets of more diverse acid fen.
The swamp is dominated by bottle sedge with frequent associated species including a number of floating moss mats.
To the north, there is an unusual fen community dominated by water horsetail and ragged Robin growing over a variable moss layer. This community is one of the most diverse in the area.
Notable plants include greater bladderwort, floating club-rush, marsh St. Johns-wort and the moss Sphagnum squarrosum.

Site Related Documents

Site map (.PDF 769Kb)Opens in new window., Citation Document (.PDF 111Kb)Opens in new window. and Views about Management document (.PDF 70Kb)Opens in New window.