Keelhilla, Slieve Carron

Keelhilla, Slieve Carron, sometimes referred to as the Slieve Carran Nature Reserve,^[1] was legally protected as a national nature reserve by the Irish government in 1986.^[2][3] The site forms a part of the wider Burren limestone landscape located on the north-east edge of the Burren plateau, with a karst topography. The sites includes karst pavement, scrub grassland, and woodland.^[4][5]

Some of the features of the reserve which fall under European priority habitats are the orchid-bearing calcareous grassland, limestone pavement, and petrifying springs. Among the recorded animals there are choughs and peregrine falcons, and a herd of feral goats.^[1] A rare glue fungus has been recorded on the hazel trees growing in Keelhilla.^[6] The site also contains an early medieval ecclesiastical settlement associated with St Colman mac Duagh, with a number of archaeological monuments including a stone oratory, a holy well, and a graveyard. There are some older archaeological sites in the reserve dating from the Bronze Age. The site has two designated walkways.^[1]