Clear Island - Definition and Overview

Clear Island (Irish Gaelic: Oileán Chléire), also known as Cape Clear, lies south west of County Cork in the Republic of Ireland. It is the southernmost inhabited part of the Republic and has a population of over 100 people. It forms part of the Gaeltacht, meaning that it is one of the few places in Ireland where Irish is still the spoken language.

The island is divided into east and west halves by an isthmus. Ferries sail from the North Harbour to Schull and Baltimore on the mainland.

The island is known as the birthplace of Saint Kierna, for the Dún an Óir fort, and for its birdlife, including guillemots, cormorants and storm petrels. Seal (mammal)s, basking sharks and dolphins are found in the surrounding water, while sea pinks and honeysuckle are common plants on the land.

Cape Clear is also home to a lighthouse and a bird observatory.

Wild indigenous snakes are not thought to exist anywhere on the mainland of Ireland , however natives of Cape Clear claim that the island is home to small wild snakes.

External link

• Cape Clear bird observatory (http://www.birdwatchireland.ie/bwi/pages092003/wildlifecourses/capeclear.html)