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Overview
This reserve is situated in the northern part of the small island of Papa Westray, one of the northernmost of the Orkney Islands.
The main habitat here is maritime heathland, found only in Orkney and northern Scotland this habitat consists of a combination of heather and sedges with crowberry and creeping willow. The reserve also includes rocky shores and a stretch of low sandstone cliffs.
Birds
Best known as the site of one of Britain's largest Arctic Tern colonies, North Hill also supports breeding Arctic Skua and four species of gull, as well as Common Eider, Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover and Dunlin. The cliffs have Common Guillemot, Razorbill and Atlantic Puffin, Northern Fulmar, Shag, Kittiwake and Rock Dove and Black Guillemot nest amongst boulders.
Elsewhere on the island Common Tern and Sandwich Tern breed in the south and Corn Crake once bred on farmland around the reserve and may still be seen occasionally. During passage periods the northern tip of the island, Mull Head, is good for seawatching with Long-tailed Skua and Sooty Shearwater regular in small numbers and a variety of passerines, including some rarities, occur in scrub throughout the island.
The Holm of Papa is a small islet a few hundred metres to the east of Papa Westray with breeding Black Guillemot, gulls, terns and a small European Storm-petrel colony.
Check-list
Birds you can see here include:
Northern Fulmar, Sooty Shearwater, European Storm-petrel, European Shag, Common Eider, Corn Crake, Eurasian Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Dunlin, Common Snipe, Eurasian Curlew, Arctic Skua, Long-tailed Skua, Great Skua, Common Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Black-legged Kittiwake, Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Arctic Tern, Common Guillemot, Razorbill, Black Guillemot, Atlantic Puffin, Rock Dove, Eurasian Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Northern Wheatear
Other Wildlife
The plants of the reserve include such scarce and interesting species as Scottish Primrose, Alpine Meadow-rue and Alpine Bistort, Awl-leaved Pearlwort, Slender Bedstraw and Frog Orchid.
Both Grey Seal and Common Seal are commonly seen offshore.
Site Information
History and Use
To do
Areas of Interest
To do
Access and Facilities
Summer visitors to the reserve should contact the RSPB warden in advance to arrange an escorted tour.
Papa Westray can be reached by passenger ferry and by air from Kirkwall and Westray.
Grid reference: HY495538
Contact Details
Tel: 01856 850176
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
Content and images originally posted by Steve
