Western Isles

Natural Heritage

There is little doubt that from whatever direction and in whatever weather the visitor approaches the Outer Hebrides, or Western Isles as they are now more commonly known, the natural environment is sure to create a lasting impression. It could be the abundance of otherwise rare habitat such as peatlands or the colourful expanse of the machair in flower. It could be the complex network of shallow sealochs that invade the landscapes. It could be the outstanding coastal and marine wildlife. Or it could be the thriving populations of wild birds that make this their home for much of the year.

Approaching the isles by ferry can be a rewarding experience, particularly in summer when there have been many reported sightings of minke whales, common and Risso’s dolphins, basking sharks and even killer whales. Those travelling on to the isle of Barra can also catch sight of the small group of bottlenose dolphins that frequent the Sound.

There are many places in and around the Western Isles which provide a focus for the diversity of wildlife and habitat and these include four National Nature Reserves. The uninhabited islands of North Rona and Sula Sgeir form one such reserve. These islands annually support an estimated 130,000 breeding seabirds with 15 different species including storm petrels, leach’s petrels, guillemots, fulmars, great black-backed gulls, razorbills, kittiwakes, puffins and gannets. Unfortunately, at 45 miles north of the Butt of Lewis and Cape Wrath, a trip to this reserve is unlikely to be an option for many visitors.

Only marginally more accessible is the St. Kilda National Nature Reserve, which lies about 40 miles west of South Harris. St. Kilda has countless remarkable natural qualities, above and below the water. It is the most important seabird breeding station in north west Europe with over one million birds. These include the world's largest colony of gannets (60,000pairs), Britain's oldest and largest colony of fulmars (62,000 pairs), and Britain's biggest colony of puffins (140,000 pairs).

Around 18,000 years ago when the sea level was about 120m below its current level, St Kilda was one large mountainous island. Over thousands of years, successive changes in the sea level have drowned and shaped the landscape so that only the highest peaks of the ‘old’ island remain above the surface, forming the islands we recognise today as the St Kilda archipelago. As well as being a National Nature Reserve, Site of Special Scientific Interest, Special Protection Area, candidate marine Special Area of Conservation and National Scenic Area, St. Kilda became Scotland's first World Heritage Site in 1987.

Slightly easier to access in summer is Hysgeir, or the Monach Isles National Nature Reserve, an isolated piece of prime machair just off North Uist, on whose sandy shores around 10% of the world population of grey seals gather every autumn.

The most accessible National Nature Reserve in the Western Isles, indeed one which the main road passes through, is the Loch Druidibeg National Nature Reserve. This is managed for the public by Scottish Natural Heritage. It is a 1677-hectare reserve, situated within the townships of Grogarry, Stilligarry and Drimsdale in South Uist. Stretching from the Atlantic coast of the west to the heather moorland of the east, it is one of the best examples in the Western Isles, of the transition from the western coastal machair system to the inland acid moorland and blanket bog.

The islands within the loch itself support native woodland scrub now largely absent from much of the Western Isles. Willow, rowan and birch grow over juniper and associated woodland plants such as primrose, bluebell and royal fern. The reserve is also home to a variety of birds including heron, mute swan, corncrake, oystercatcher, lapwing, ringed plover, redshank, and snipe. Visitors are welcome all year at Loch Druidibeg National Nature Reserve and occasionally during the summer months, there are guided walks around the reserve. There is also a self guided walk leaflet available from the Scottish Natural Heritage office in Stilligarry, for those who wish to explore the different habitats within the reserve. SNH staff can also provide advice on how to visit the other National Nature Reserves.

Other than National Nature Reserves, examples of the Western Isles’ outstanding natural environment include the vast expanse of peatlands, much of it undisturbed, which is especially widespread on inland Lewis. The peat varies between two and four metres in depth and supports a unique range of plant species and birds. This type of habitat is internationally rare and resident populations of birds, such as divers, golden plover, dunlin and greenshank, can be found here as well as golden eagles, and mammals such as otters.

The Western Isles, Harris, the Uists and Barra in particular, are also famous for machair, another globally rare habitat which is otherwise found only in Shetland, Orkney and the West coast of Ireland. Machair has been described as ‘the white sandy beaches against the backdrop of green pastures, flowers and fields of corn’. In the Uists in particular, generations of traditional crofters have helped create the high conservation interest of the machair. The work that crofters do on the land - cultivation, spreading of seaweed, cattle grazing and so on - has at the same time created the famously attractive and colourful flora and excellent habitats for many species of uncommon wild birds and insects.

Not only are birds such as lapwings, redshank, oystercatcher, snipe and corn buntings to be found here in abundance, but around a quarter to a third of all of Britain’s breeding dunlin and ringed plover occur on the machair, nesting at the highest densities recorded anywhere in the world. The corncrake, one of Europe’s most vulnerable birds which has disappeared from almost everywhere within the British Isles except the Scottish islands, has shown a modest recovery in numbers in some parts of the Western Isles. Its call is still a familiar sound on many crofts in the summer.

Eagles too are a popular feature. The mountains of north Harris in particular are important for golden eagles, while occasional sightings of the larger white-tailed sea eagle, reintroduced to Scotland in 1975, have been reported.

On North Uist the spectacular deep peatland with its mosaic of low hills and intricately entangled lochans support a wide variety of specialised vegetation and birds. Loch nam Madadh (or Loch Maddy), a unique fjardic sea loch system, is a major feature of this island. This complex network of saline lagoons, shallow inlets and bays and tidal rapids represents one of the most extensive and diverse systems of its type in Europe, combining both salt and fresh water. Loch nam Madadh supports a highly unusual combination of intertidal plants and animals, noted for their tolerance to changes in salinity and in some cases rapid water movement. In some of the lagoons the layer between fresh and salt water is so constant that fresh water organisms grow just above saltwater organisms where the salinity division occurs.

Loch nam Madadh is also very important to people. As a natural haven, it acts as a ferry terminal, harbour for the local creel fishermen, supports salmon farms, and offers a good location for outdoor pursuits.

In the Western Isles one is never far from the awesome presence of the Atlantic Ocean and the prospect of coastal erosion, which is taken very seriously here. One of the best natural defences against this is kelp. The many kelp forests around the isles can reduce the effects of coastal erosion by absorbing the impact from Atlantic waves without interfering with the natural dynamics of coastal movements. But kelp is much more than a natural defence system, it is important for wildlife too both above and below the water, supporting noticeably larger numbers of animals than areas without kelp. Many fish and shellfish shelter amongst kelp forests which provide feeding areas for otters. Cast kelp and other weed on the shore can provide good foraging for wading birds. Furthermore Local crofters are encouraged to continue collecting storm-cast kelp and spread it on the sandy machair soils as fertiliser and to reduce wind erosion.

Visitors to the Western Isles can enhance their experience of the natural environment with the help of the local countryside rangers. The rangers are part-funded by Scottish Natural Heritage. They provide a free service by offering guided walks and talks and help with project work in relation to the natural environment. The Harris ranger service is operated by North Harris Estate (Tel. 01876 500329) and the rangers for the Uists, Benbecula and Barra can be contacted on 01870 602039 or 07799 362235. Other useful contacts are the Scottish Natural Heritage offices in Stornoway (Tel. 01851 705258) and South Uist (Tel. 01870 620238).