The Quaternary of Central Western Ireland was produced to accompany the joint QRA/IQUA annual field meeting based in western Ireland, 4th - 10th April 2005.
From the introduction:
"This fieldguide covers a very wide area of western Ireland and as such it cannot be totally comprehensive in its coverage of the Quaternary of the region.
However, the sites visited here are predominantly new, exciting or characteristic of the Quaternary of western Ireland. The guide has concentrated on the glaciation and landscape evolution of the region as well as on aspects of the archaeology and the geomorphology of the fascinating limestone surfaces exposed throughout the Burren and the Galway lowlands.
In order to set the scene for the visits to various localities the introductory section contains four parts. The first puts the bedrock geology into context, the second is a review of some of the previous (Pleistocene) research undertaken in the areas we visit with a comprehensive list of references. The third part to the introduction is very important and it brings the models for glaciation in western Ireland up to date and allows the sites we visit and the landscapes we see to be placed in the context of modern Quaternary science and our understanding of the dynamics of the last cold stage. The fourth part introduces sea-level and the fascinating promise of sites we visit on day 4."