Machair

This article is about the landform. For the TV series, see Machair (TV series). For the area in Galloway from the same root, see The Machars.

Fertile low-lying grassy plain

The machair on Berneray, Outer Hebrides Machair east of Uig Bay, Lewis The machair towards West beach, Isle of Berneray, Outer Hebrides

A machair (Scottish Gaelic pronunciation: [ˈmaxɪɾʲ]; sometimes machar in English) is a fertile low-lying grassy plain found on part of the northwestern coastlines of Ireland and Scotland, particularly the Outer Hebrides. The best examples are found on North and South Uist, Harris and Lewis.[1]

## Etymology

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Machair is a Gaelic word meaning "fertile plain", but the word is now also used in scientific literature to describe the dune grasslands unique to western Scotland and northwest Ireland.[2] It had been used by naturalists since 1926, but the term was not adopted by scientists until the 1940s.[3] The word is used in a number of Irish, Scottish and Manx place names to refer to low-lying fertile ground or fields, even in areas where no machair has ever been supported.[clarification needed] [3] In Scotland, some Gaelic speakers use machair as a general term for the entire dune system, including the dune ridge, while others restrict its use to the extensive flat grasslands inland of the dune ridge.[3] In Ireland, the word has only been used in place names, and the existence of the habitat there has only recently[when?] been confirmed.[3] In Manx Gaelic, 'magher' is a common term for a field.

In 1976, an attempt was made to strictly define machair,[4] although a number of systems still evade classification.[3] This proved difficult when the habitat was listed on Annex I of the Habitats Directive in 1992, leading to the distinction between "machair grassland" and the "machair system".[3]

## Geography

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A stream cutting through the machair highlights a sandy composition

Machair differs from the links on the east coast of Scotland in having a lower mineral content, whereas the links are high in silica.[5] Machair plains are highly calcareous, with calcium carbonate concentrations ranging from 20% to 80% on the beaches, and decreasing further away from the coast.[5] The pH of a machair is typically greater than 7, i.e. it is alkaline.[3]

The inside of a machair is often wet or marshy, and may contain lochs.[3][6]

### Formation

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The modern theory of machair formation was first put forward by William MacGillivray in 1830.[5] He worked out that shell fragments are rolled by waves towards the shore, where they are further broken up. The small shell fragments are blown up the beach to form mounds, which are then blown inland.[5]

### Humans

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Human activity has played an important role in the creation of the machair. Archaeological evidence suggests that some trees were cleared for agriculture as early as 6000 BC, but there was still some woodland on the coast of South Uist as late as 1549.[5] Seaweed deposited by early farmers provided a protective cover and added nutrients to the soil.[5] The grass is kept short by cattle and sheep, which also add trample and add texture to the sward, forming tussocks that favour a number of bird species.[5]

The soil is low in a number of key nutrients, including trace elements such as copper, cobalt and manganese, requiring cattle to be fed supplements or taken to summer pastures elsewhere.[5] The sandy soil does not hold nutrients well, making artificial fertilisers ineffective and limiting the crops that can be grown to certain varieties of oats and rye, and bere barley.[5]

## Ecology

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Machairs have received considerable ecological and conservational attention, chiefly because of their unique ecosystems.

### Sea

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Kelp in the sea next to the machair softens the impact of waves, reducing erosion, and when it is washed ashore by storms, forms a protective barrier on the beach.[5] As the kelp decays, it provides a home for local sand flies, which in turn provide food for flocks of starlings and other passerines, wintering waders, gulls and others.[5] When covered with sand, kelp will compost to form a fertile bed in which annual coastal flowers and marram grass will thrive.[5]

Wildflowers on a machair

### Flora

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Hebridean spotted orchid

They can house rare carpet flowers, including orchids such as Irish lady's tresses and the Hebridean spotted orchid and other plants such as the yellow rattle.

### Fauna

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Bird species including the corn crake, twite, dunlin, common redshank and ringed plover, as well as rare insects such as the northern colletes bee, the great yellow bumblebee (Bombus distinguendus) and the moss carder bee (Bombus muscorum), are found there.

### Threats

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Arable and fallow machair is threatened by changes in land management, where the original system of crofts is under threat from a reduction in the number of crofters and the use of "modern" techniques.[7] Changes in the Common Agricultural Policy, which decoupled production from subsidies, reduced the amount of grazing taking place in many crofting areas, and led to some areas being undergrazed or abandoned.[7][8][9] A lack of native seed increases the need for fertiliser and herbicides.[7]

Rising sea levels, a consequence of global warming, also pose a threat to low-lying coastal areas, leading to increased erosion.[5][10][11] In January 1993, the storm which ran MV Braer aground off Shetland eroded 3 metres (9.8 feet) of machair along the entire length of Uist and Barra.[5] On 11/12 January 2005, a storm blew consistently in excess of hurricane force 12, destroying hectares of machair.[5]

## References

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1. ^ "Machair". Scottish Natural Heritage. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
2. ^ Novo, Francisco García; Crawford, Robert M. M.; Barradas, Mari Cruz Díaz (1997). The Ecology and Conservation of European Dunes. Universidad de Sevilla. p. 42\. ISBN 9788474059922.
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Angus, Stewart. "De Tha Machair? Towards a Machair Definition" (PDF). Scottish Natural Heritage. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
4. ^ Ritchie, W. (1976). "The Meaning and Definition of Machair". Transactions of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh. 42 (4): 431–440\. doi:10.1080/03746607608685306.
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Love, John A. "Oh, dear! What can the Machair be?" (PDF). Glasgow Natural History Society. Retrieved 18 December 2013. `{{cite journal}}`: Cite journal requires `|journal=` (help)
6. ^ Ratcliffe, Derek (2012). A Nature Conservation Review: Volume 1. Cambridge University Press. p. 141\. ISBN 9780521203296.
7. ^ a b c "Machair - unknown jewel". European Forum on Nature Conservation and Pastoralism. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
8. ^ "To him who hath shall be given…" (PDF). The Crofter. September 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
9. ^ "SCF Contribution to the Scottish Government Food Policy Discussion "Choosing the Right Ingredients"" (PDF). Scottish Crofting Federation. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
10. ^ Beament, Emily (14 May 2013). "Machair under threat from rise in level of seas". The Herald. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
11. ^ "Machair". Wild Scotland. Retrieved 19 December 2013.

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Coastal geography

Landforms|

* Anchialine pool
* Archipelago
* Atoll
* Avulsion
* Ayre
* Barrier island
* Bay
* Bight
* Bodden
* Brackish marsh
* Cape
* Channel
* Cliff
* Coast
* Coastal plain
* Coastal waterfall
* Continental margin
* Continental shelf
* Coral reef
* Cove
* Dune
* cliff-top
* Estuary
* Firth
* Fjard
* Fjord
* Freshwater marsh
* Fundus
* Gat
* Geo
* Gulf
* Gut
* Hapua
* Headland
* Inlet
* Intertidal wetland
* Island
* Islet
* Isthmus
* Liman
* Lagoon
* Machair
* Mudflat
* Natural arch
* Peninsula
* Reef
* Ria
* Salt marsh
* Shoal
* Skerry
* Sound
* Spit
* Stack
* Strait
* Strand plain
* Submarine canyon
* Tidal island
* Tidal marsh
* Tide pool
* Tied island
* Tombolo
* Waituna
* Windwatt

Beaches|

* Beach cusps
* Beach evolution
* Beach ridge
* Beach wrack
* Beaches in estuaries and bays
* Beachrock
* Coastal morphodynamics
* Pocket beach
* Raised beach
* Recession
* Shell beach
* Shingle beach
* Storm beach
* Wash margin

River mouths|

* Debouch
* Mouth bar
* River delta
* mega
* regressive

Processes|

* Blowhole
* Cliffed coast
* Coastal biogeomorphology
* Coastal erosion
* Concordant coastline
* Current
* Cuspate foreland
* Discordant coastline
* Emergent coastline
* Feeder bluff
* Flat coast
* Graded shoreline
* Ingression coast
* Large-scale coastal behaviour
* Longshore drift
* Marine regression
* Marine transgression
* Raised shoreline
* Rip current
* Rocky shore
* Sea cave
* Sea foam
* Shoal
* peresyp
* Steep coast
* Submergent coastline
* Surf break
* Surf zone
* Surge channel
* Swash
* Undertow
* Volcanic arc
* Wave-cut platform
* Wave shoaling
* Wind fetch
* Wind wave

Management|

* Accretion
* Coastal management
* Integrated coastal zone management
* Submersion

Related|

* Bulkhead line
* Coastal engineering
* Grain size
* boulder
* clay
* cobble
* granule
* gravel
* pebble
* sand
* shingle
* silt
* Intertidal zone
* Littoral zone
* Physical oceanography
* Region of freshwater influence
* River plume

* Category

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