A north-facing triangular bay, on the county borders of Mayo and Sligo and at the mouth of the Moy river. A long, sand island, Bartragh Island, separates the south-west side of the bay from open water. Most of the inner region is intertidal, with extensive sand- and mudflats. The main land-uses are for amenity, and the Moy estuary is renowned for salmon fishing.
Other wintering species occurring in numbers of national importance include Mergus serrator (31 birds, 1996), Charadrius hiaticula (140 birds, 1995), Pluvialis squatarola (237 birds, 1996), Calidris alba (57 birds, 1996) and Calidris alpina (2,131 birds, 1996).
BirdLife International (2021) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Killala Bay. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 02/12/2021.