 web.jpg "Dublin Bay prawn (Credit Paul Naylor)")
Dublin Bay prawn (Credit Paul Naylor)
Dublin Bay prawns feature widely in this habitat and are of great interest to the fishing industry. The survival of this habitat is vital to the sustainability of this creature.
The volume of life in mud habitats is on a par with rainforests and coral reefs!
You can probably guess the main habitat that is found at Mud Hole ... mud! It’s something we have a lot of in the North-West of England, but without it this region would be far poorer. It is home to a diverse range of creatures that form a vital part of the Irish Sea food web.
Mud Hole is deep-water mud, around 35m deep, located 21km off the coast of Cumbria and covers an area of 73km2. This is a perfect habitat for burrowing creatures such as Dublin Bay prawns, angular crabs and shrimps. Delicate sea pens and hydroids also make this mud their home, as do urchins and a variety of molluscs.
A diverse number of worms also feature here, creating volcano-like domes on the seabed.
This recommended Marine Conservation Zone is ON HOLD at the moment as Defra has indicated that there is not enough evidence to support designation.
We need you to urge Defra to use this data as soon as possible and to consider this site as an urgent and high priority for designation in the future.
Although Defra indicated that there was enough evidence to designate the site for protection of the deep mud habitats found within it, they have indicated that further data is required on the remaining features- sub-tidal mud, sea pens and burrowing megafauna. They have also indicated that further work is required to understand the potential impacts of designation of the site on the Northern Ireland commercial fishing sector. This site has been identified as at risk of damage and deterioration by Natural England and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. The mud habitats are highly sensitive and are subject to high fishing activity for Dublin Bay Prawn (Nephrops). Defra has carried out additional survey work in 2012 within the site last year. This data has not yet been taken into account.
We need you to urge Defra to use this data as soon as possible and to consider this site as an urgent and high priority for designation in the future. The site should be protected from further damage and degradation in the meantime.
Other nearby MCZs
Location map
Mud Hole recommended MCZ is located in the map below.
Contains UKHO Law of the Sea data. Crown copyright and database right and contains Ordnance Survey Data Crown copyright and database 2012
Downloads
| Filename | File size |
|---|---|
| Mud Hole.pdf | 244.9 KB |