Bird-report on the Orkneys July 1997

introduction
In the period of 2-28 July my family and I visited the Orkney isles just to the north of the Scottish mainland. The main goal was observing birds but other aspects of nature and of course enjoying our holidays were also important.

practical information
Being an archipelago, the Orkneys are best reached by boat. There are three possibilities: - from Aberdeen to Stromness when you want to combine it with visiting the Shetlands - from JohnO'Groats, when you are in a hurry and just an ordinary tourist - from Scrabster to Stromness, the best choice, 2-3 times per day. The sailing time is 2 hours and you should use that time well by watching the seabirds near Hoy. The ferries to Stromness are run by P & O -ferries. Stromness lies on the western part of the biggest island, the so-called mainland. There are 3 campsites on the mainland of Orkney, the one near Stromness is a good base and has an excellent view on Scapa Flow. It is however the windiest part of the island ! There is also one near Evie (near the Birsay Moors) and one in Kirkwall (industrial area). An extra possibility is to fly by plane from Kirkwall to North Ronaldsay and spend some time in the bird-observatory (information: kevin@nrbo.prestel.co.uk).

description of interesting areas

West Mainland
This is the more interesting part of the mainland of the Orkneys. There are cliffs, moors, lochs and agricultural land. The cliffs and the moors are the most interesting.
The cliffs on the western coast are easily accessible:
1 the Brough of Birsay , an island at the NW end which can be reached by foot during low tide. All cliff birds are present here: Shag , Fulmar, Kittiwake, (Black) Guillemot, Auk, Puffin.
2. Marwick head, south of the Brough, all cliff birds (RSPB-reserve)
3.Yesnaby, most cliff birds (no Puffins), 10 miles NW of Stromness
Peregrine, Great Skua, Rock-Dove, Rock Pipit, Raven and Twite are often present in the same surroundings.

There are two areas of extensive moors:
1.Orphir-Hobbister, an area to the southeast of Stennes with Hen Harrier, Merlin, Grouse, Short-eared Owl, Stonechat, Sedge Warbler and some cliffbirds at the southern end of Hobbister. Hobbister is easily accessible and is a RSPB-reserve.
2.Birsay Moors, to the west of Evie. You can get a good view when you drive from Evie to Dounby. Cottasgarth, southwest of Evie, was not visited by me but should be interesting too. This the best area for Whimbrels and Golden Plovers. Artic and Great Skuas are quite numerous; other species are Hen Harrier, Short-eared Owl and some Red-throated Divers on the small lochs.
The agricultural land is too green to be interesting, but for the great numbers of Curlews and Oystercatchers; the west mainland is the best part for the scarce Corncrakes.

Hoy
Hoy is one of the bigger islands and it has the highest peaks in the Orkneys, 4-500 m.
North Hoy is a breathtaking beautiful landscape; the human influence being small. There is a ferry (passengers and bikes, no cars) from Stromness to this part twice a day. A car-ferry from Orphir sails to the south of Hoy. Passengers can take a small bus from the Stromness-ferry to the other side of N- Hoy: Rackwick. From Rackwick you can walk to the famous Old Man of Hoy with lots of cliff-birds and Skuas. There is track leading further to the Stromness-ferry with a magnificent view. During rain or fog this part of the walk is not without danger. Visiting the Orkneys without visiting Hoy makes your holiday incomplete !

Rousay, (Papa) Westray ,.....
The other islands are also interesting but you should make a choice, depending on the accessibility and the presence of cliffs or moors: see "further reading"

North Ronaldsay
This island is worth mentioning separately :
1. It is northernmost
2. It has a bird-observatory, where you can stay one day , two days, a week....
Being the most northerly of the islands it is visited by a variety of migrants/rarities, especially in spring and in the autumn. The people engaged with the bird-observatory are quite active and are running some programs for their guests. There is a regular flight from Kirkwall-airport to N- Ronaldsay as long as there is no fog !! The ferry sails only on friday !.

Birds, a survey
- Cliff-birds can be observed along the whole western part of the Mainland , N- Hoy and Scapa Flow near Stromness. The best spots are mentioned above.

- Redthroated Diver, quite common on Mainland and Hoy.


- Manx Shearwater, Storm Petrel and Gannet can be observed flying over Scapa Flow; the breeding-places are not easily accessible.

- Hen Harrier, less numerous than I expected, only Birsay Moors and Kirkwall airport

- Merlin, rather scarce, best observed in the moors, Rousay, Hoy

- Peregrine, various places along the cliff-coasts of W- Mainland, Hoy

- Corncrake, rather scarce (I haven't heard it), best chances on Mainland (west)

- Whimbrel, breeding in the moors of the West Mainland

- Great Skua, numerous all along the coasts, breeds in great number on the moors

- Artic Skua, less numerous as Great, but same places

- Shorteared Owl, is getting quite pale during the summer but is still smaller than the Snowy Owl (!). widespread on and near the moors and Kirkwall airport.

Other Aspects

There is more on the Orkneys worth observing/visiting:
Sea-mammals:
- Otter, there is an otter-crossing sign near Kirkwall; this could well be the only otter you will see. This very elusive animal occurs in lochs and in coastal areas.
- Common(est) Seal and Grey Seal are common around the isles and can be seen sunbathing
- The great numbers of seals attracts the Killer Whales !
- Harbour Porpoise is quite common in the Scapa Flow
- One Bottle-nosed Dolphin was seen by me in the Scapa Flow

- Several species of dolphins and whales can be observed, but only in good conditions of light
and with a very calm sea. During my stay this happened on 4 days in the evening !

Flowers:
- Scottish Primrose, a small purple flower, which occurs for example near Yesnaby
- Purple Orchid, quite common along many small roads
- Marsh/Spotted orchids, along/in the moors of W- Mainland and Hoy
- Bog Asphodel, widespread in the moors
- lots of other species which occur in humid conditions

Archeology
There are a lot of interesting sites to be visited : Skara Brae, Standing Stones of Stennes, Maeshowe, Brough of Birsay, Blackhammar.......
They are the products of a rich history : the Neolithicum , Bronze Age, Picts, Vikings....

Further Reading:
C. Booth a.o., Orkney Bird report 1995, 1996
Eric Meek, Islands of Birds, a guide to Orkney Birds, 1997
George Mackay Brown, portrait of Orkney
Charles Tait, the Orkney guide book, 1997

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    • Harm A. Meek
    De Plevier 7
    7591 JJ Denekamp
    Netherlands
    meek@xs4all.nl