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June, 1907. The Irish Naturalist. 185 



THE FLORA OF THE BARONY OF SHANID. 



BY M. C. KNOWI.ES AND C G. O'BRIEN. 



Thp; barony of Sharrid occupies the north-western angle of 

 Co. Limerick, and is so called from Shanid Castle, a famous 

 old stronghold standing on a hill behind Shanagoldeu, which 

 dominates the scenery from one end of the barony to the other. 

 This district, extending inland almost as far as Newcastle, 

 and covering an area of 145J square miles, has the Shannon 

 for its northern, and Co. Kerry for its western boundary. A 

 line drawn from Moi*gans, opposite the Beeves lighthouse, 

 touching the River Deal near Newbridge, through Lisna- 

 cailliagh, back over the hills near Glenastar, and including 

 Rooskagh, a mountain of over 1,100 feet, and the highest point 

 in the barony, describes the eastern boundary fairly accurately. 

 The rocks are various beds of the Carboniferous series, and 

 the features of the landscape, and of the vegetation follow very 

 visibly the geological structure. The surface is divided be- 

 tween the undulating limestone tract in the east, with its 

 close-growing flora (a fine grassy country, but ill-suited for 

 timber), and the shales, grits, and Coal-measures rising into 

 hills in the south and west, where the soil, often poor and 

 boggy, and of less agricultural value, grows trees of noble 

 form and stature. Except the Shannon, which is practically 

 sea, there are no rivers of importance. The White River, 

 which rises in Knockfinish, drains the northern tract of the 

 barony before joining the Shannon at Eoghill, and the River 

 Gale3 r , a tributary of the Feale, flowing west through the 

 southern portion, are the only two that are more than streams. 

 There are no lakes or ponds, and consequently the freshwater 

 aquatic flora is poorly represented. 



North-west Limerick has, perhaps, received more attention 

 from botanists than any other part of the county, but. with the 

 exception of Mr. Stewart, who was the first competent botanist 

 to explore this region, they seem to have confined their in- 

 vestigations chiefly to the limestone crag-lands east of Foynes. 



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