Loughkeelan is a small eutrophic lough with high calcium levels, surrounded by an extensive swamp of common reed with a narrow fringe of calcicolous (rich in calcium/limestone) fen. The aquatic flora is of particular interest, with extensive stonewort cover, and soft hornwort being recorded here and only two other sites in Ireland.
The calcicolous fen is one of a few examples in Northern Ireland, with such habitats more common in the lime stone areas of central Ireland. The fen is formed by lessor tussock sedge growing in association with the moss Calliergon giganteum, along with a number of rarer plants such as fen pondweed, marsh stitchwort and slender sedge.
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