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Skomer Island, Wales, UK

Surrounded by high dramatic sea cliffs, treeless Skomer Island is a National Nature Reserve and one of the finest wildlife sites in the country. This is truly a birders paradise! It’s best known for its large population of breeding seabirds, most notably some 600,000 Manx shearwaters and 20,000 Atlantic puffins, the largest puffin colony in Britain. Nesting razorbills, fulmars, Storm petrels and gannets, as well as the endemic Skomer vole are found here. It is surrounded by nutrient rich waters where harbour porpoises and magnificent whales come to feed. Grey seals are also plentiful on Skomer, especially during the pupping season in September.

 

Currently uninhabited, the island has several important archeological sites. Stone circles, standing stones and the remnants of prehistoric houses, date ancient human settlements as far back as 5,000 years. The volcanic basaltic rocks of which Skomer is comprised date from the Silurian Period around 440 million years ago.