Life in the Water

 

The waters of the Lough teem with microscopic plants and animals, many of them the mobile larval stages of larger species common on the shores and seabed. These are known as plankton and comprise the basic food source of most marine animals.

Sand-eels and the fry of several fish species feed on the plankton. They in turn provide food for many of the seabirds breeding around the Lough.
Though numbers of larger fish seem to have declined, a wide range of fish species can be seen by divers, especially around wrecks on the seabed.
Kittiwake and shag breed on the cliffs of Guns Island, with fulmar nesting at Killard.Many other species of seabird may be seen from many vantage points both in and around the Lough.Quoile Pondage.
The sheltered waters, rocks and islands attract seabirds, particularly terns, black-headed gulls, black guillemots and eider duck all of which breed and feed within and close to the Lough.
The Lough is the main breeding area in Northern Ireland for common seals, of which there are several hundred in summer. A few grey seals also breed here in the winter months.
One of the best places to observe seals hauled out on the rocks is from the car park at Cloghy Rocks south of Strangford village. The wardens from The Quoile Countryside Centre post information in the car park advising the best times to watch throughout the year.This usually coincides with the hours either side of the low tide.Cloghy Rocks.

Many of the fish species and other marine life which live in and visit the Lough and Irish Sea may be seen at Exploris, the public aquarium managed by Ards Borough Council at Portaferry. Exploris.

Passengers travelling back and forth on the Strangford ferry often catch glimpses of Common or Harbour porpoises visiting the Lough.