Slieve Gullion SAC

Slieve Gullion is a compact upland formed by volcanic activity in Tertiary times, some 60 million years ago. It is situated in south Armagh about 5 miles southwest of Newry, and at a height of 573m, it represents a prominent landscape feature. The area is important geologically, representing the finest example of a Tertiary igneous centre in Ireland and it is also among the best topographic expressions of a ring-dyke system in the British Isles.

Slieve Gullion SAC supports a range of upland habitats and associated transitional communities, especially to the north of the site, where the upland heath grades downslope into lowland heaths, acid grasslands and basin fens.