Ballyvaughan (Irish: Baile Uí Bheacháin, meaning Town of the Beacháin (Behan) family or Townland of the Mushrooms) is a small harbour village in County Clare in the Republic of Ireland. It is located on the south shores of Galway Bay, in the northwest corner of The Burren; the Burren is an area of great rocky expanse, considered by many to be a unique landscape. Each year botanists and naturalists roam this karst landscape in search of Arctic, Alpine and Mediterranean plants that grow in profusion over the limestone pavements. The Burren is renowned for its archaeology. Ballyvaughan is surrounded by megalithic tombs such as Poulnabrone dolmen, celtic ring forts such as Caherconnell Stone Fort, medieval churches and castles.