exploring northern ireland's temperate rainforests

Explore Correl Glen, a rare temperate rainforest in West County Fermanagh with Curator of Botany, Rhonda Ridley.

What's rarer than a tropical rainforest? A temperate rainforest, which makes up less than 1% of global land cover.

Grab your wellies and hand lens and get ready to explore one of the rarest rainforests in the world...

What are Temperate Rainforests?

Tree covered in epiphytes (Breen Oak Wood, Co. Antrim) — A fallen tree trunk covered in moss and fern epiphytes, Breen Oakwood Nature Reserve, Co. Antrim.

Underside detail of a fern (Breen Oak Wood, Co. Antrim) — Plagiochila asplenoides – a leafy liverwort, Banagher Glen Nature Reserve, Co. Londonderry.

Epiphytic growth on a tree — Bunodophoron melanocarpum a rare lichen in Northern Ireland, Correl Glen Nature Reserve, Co. Fermanagh.

Temperate rainforests are globally rare and special woodlands that are home to unique communities of plants that thrive under specific climatic conditions. As the name rainforest suggests, they require very wet, damp conditions and mild temperatures. These conditions create the perfect home for unusual epiphytic species of lichens, mosses, liverworts and ferns.

An epiphyte is a plant that grows on the surface of another plant, usually a tree. The epiphyte does not steal any nutrients from the other plant.

A Habitat of Many Names

Celtic rainforests, Atlantic Oakwoods, Atlantic Rainforests, Oceanic woodlands, Temperate rainforests, W17, Western Oceanic oakwood, Temperate Atlantic Rainforests or Atlantic Temperate Rainforests are just some of the many names assigned to this habitat.

Where are Temperate Rainforests found?

A mature tree with gnarled branches laden with epiphytic fern, moss and liverwort species. — A common sight in temperate rainforests in Northern Ireland is a mature tree with gnarled branches laden with epiphytic fern, moss and liverwort species.

Temperate rainforests grow in far flung reaches of the globe, for example parts of Chile, Japan, New Zealand and the Pacific Northwest in the USA. In Europe, Britain and Ireland are the key stronghold for this habitat. Examples of temperate rainforest in Northern Ireland are Correl Glen Nature Reserve, Co. Fermanagh and Breen Oakwood, Co. Antrim. They are often found in steep sided narrow glens, gorges, gullies and valleys, areas that are unsuitable for farming.

Why do they matter in Northern Ireland?

Northern Ireland is one of the least wooded parts of Europe. The majority of woodland in Northern Ireland is non-native conifer plantation. Our native woodland now exists in tiny fragments covering approximately 1% of the landscape. Of this native woodland, only a small portion are temperate rainforests.

A Rare Killarney Fern

Many important rare plant species are found in temperate rainforest. One of the most remarkable species found in several temperate rainforest sites in Northern Ireland is the Killarney fern. This delicate fern is so rare that it is protected by law.

There is limited scientific information about temperate rainforests in Northern Ireland. A better understanding of the habitat will help its nature conservation. Yet scientists are only beginning to uncover the intricate ecology of these woodlands.

Ecology is the scientific study of how all living species interact with each other and their environment.

Discovering more about Temperate Rainforests in Northern Ireland

Filmy ferns under boulders and in caverns at Correl Glen — Looking for filmy ferns under boulders and in crevices and caverns in Correl Glen, Nature Reserve, Co. Fermanagh.

Since 2023, researchers at National Museums NI have been studying these woodlands using historical plant specimens from the Ulster Museum’s collection, environmental records from CEDaR and fieldwork. This research is helping scientists better understand where temperate rainforests are found and what makes them special.