Marine Biodiversity Data Portal - NI

Port Vinegar, NE Coast.

[Site list for year 1985]

Survey number: 555 Event number: 19850417/21 Date: 1985-04-17 GPS: 55.08800,-6.04800. Depth: 3.5 to 0.2 m. [ View map ]

Site Description: The location consists of sharp triangular sandstone ridges with the occasional area of sandstone conglomerate. The ridges were parallel to the shore, sloping steeply into the water with overhangs towards the landward. The slopes forming the flat faces tended to be more exposed to wave action. The shore is backed by shingle and grass slopes with small patchy areas of saltmarsh in the supralittoral. The transect site has a large ridge sloping steeply into the sea, which has Pelvetia/Fucus spiralis /Ascophyllum/Fucus serratus/Laminaria zones which are clearly defined. The more exposed surfaces have patellobarnacle instead of Fucus serratus and Ascophyllum. Behind the ridges is a wide plateau just below the height of the ridge top. This is relatively flat with some irregular rock and deep couloirs and rock pools. It has a poorly defined zonation with Pelvetia on top of higher rocks and an indistinguishable Fucus spiralis/Ascophyllum zone giving the majority of the platform a blanket algal cover. Areas of water occurring in shallow depressions of the upper shore are dominated by Ulva intestinalis (originally recorded as Eneteromorpha intestinalis). Couloirs occasionally cut the ridges and allow water to drain from the plateau. These couloirs had boulders and pebbles and sand in the bottoms and appear quite rich for both flora and fauna. The rock pools on the plateau were generally large, and again had boulders and pebbles in the bottom. The sides of the couloirs had many crevices and overhangs. Below the lowest zone, the sea bed was shifting pebbles with no algal cover. Occasionally the ridge outcropped giving substrata for rich areas of Laminaria. Encrusting reds occurred below the Laminaria canopy.

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