Medieval period

Murlough National Nature Reserve is a fragile 6000 year old sand dune system owned by the National Trust and managed as Ireland’s first Nature Reserve since 1967.

It is an excellent area for walking and bird watching due to its spectacular location at the edge of Dundrum Bay and the Mourne Mountains. It offers the best and most extensive example of dune heath within Ireland, a network of paths and boardwalks through the dunes, woodland and heath with an array of butterflies and wild flowers.

One of 22 butterfly species, the Marsh Fritillary, is of European importance. The reserve is internationally important for wintering wildfowl and waders as well as a haul-out site for Common and Grey seals.

There is evidence of human habitation from Neolithic times, through the Bronze Age to the Medieval period.