Lough Ree, the Lake of Kings, is one of the few areas in the country where the common scoter (Melanitta nigra) can be seen by birdwatchers. The male scoter often looks all black at a distance and the female has characteristic pale cheeks.
While the scoter is common in the North Sea and around the Baltic, Lough Ree can claim its own small flock, and tourism interests in the midlands are seizing on that fact.
Now tourism and other groups in Cos Longford, Westmeath and Roscommon, which surround the lake, are preparing a special plan for the development of the lake and its hinterland.
And the scoter's habitat will be one of the first things to be protected from any development on, in or around the lake.
Ms Cathryn Hannon, the environmental consultant on the study which is being conducted by Mr Jarlath Duffy, a midlands-based consultant, said her aim would be to highlight the important areas of high conservation value on the lake and surrounding area.
She recently told a public meeting that the lake was a gem with rare butterflies, breeding colonies, old habitats, rare birds, rich boglands, untouched islands, archaeological ruins, historical finds and a rich and varied plant life.
The impetus for the study came from Athlone Chamber of Commerce last year following a series of outbreaks of pollution on the lake.
It convened a series of meetings with various bodies and put itself forward as an independent broker to undertake the detailed study of the lake and its hinterland.
That study, now called the Lough Ree development plan, is well under way and is being grant-aided by the three Leader (rural development) organisations in Longford, Westmeath and Roscommon.
All the interests involved - fishing, boating, tourism and farming - are participating in the study, which is also examining previous documentation and reports about the Lake of the Kings.