Salmon Fishing Environment around Muckish Mountain
Hills covered with heather and grass land overlooking the lower land, Atlantic Ocean and Tory Island.
There are a few mink territories on the river Ray. They are shy darkish brown / black animals, excellent swimmers like the bigger-mostly nocturnal-otter. The mink is one and a half foot long, tail included. They have been set free in the past or simply escaped and are now an established species in Ireland.
The hare you see along the river is the Arctic hare. Similar but not the same as the continental hare.
Foxes and deer are never far away, just like the badger. (Total Irish population >200,000).
The dipper is a very unusual territorial bird only found on rivers and streams, looking like a small black bird-male has white spot on breast - capable of walking the bottom of the river with a foot of water above its head, looking for something to eat at the same time. Few birdwatchers are so lucky to have observed this.
The heron is often on the river looking for fish it can handle.
A very large bird of prey in the sky could be one of the eagles of which five are released each year in the nearby National Park Glenveagh - www.glenveaghnationalpark.ie
. The birds have been seen last spring in Connemara and County Kerry.