Stephen Dunstan
Registered User
Out Skerries
Out Skerries, or Skerries for short, is made up of several small islands to the north east of Whalsay. The three main islands of Housay, Bruray and Grunay have all been inhabited but the latter isn't any longer. There has been a history of active birding on the islands since the late 1960s, and resident birders for much of that time but not at present. Bobby Tulloch and Bill Oddie both made several visits to Skerries.
The relative isolation of the islands and position at the eastern limits of Shetland make them a good site for finding Siberian rarities. A few American birds have been seen over the years, including most notably an Ovenbird, but it does less well for them than many other Shetland islands.
There are no trees on Skerries other than small ones in gardens. This has pros and cons for the rarity finder. The isles punch well above their weight for Lanceys and PGTips, but regular species on Shetland like Golden Oriole haven't been recorded and the first Firecrest was only last year. Freshwater is restricted to a single small brackish pool on Bruray and one on Grunay.
These days coverage on the isles come from Edwin Tait when he is resident rather than in Lerwick, two or three visiting birders / groups in the autumn and Shetland birders day tripping when there hasn't been much coverage. It is possible to day trip from mainland Shetland on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Out Skerries, or Skerries for short, is made up of several small islands to the north east of Whalsay. The three main islands of Housay, Bruray and Grunay have all been inhabited but the latter isn't any longer. There has been a history of active birding on the islands since the late 1960s, and resident birders for much of that time but not at present. Bobby Tulloch and Bill Oddie both made several visits to Skerries.
The relative isolation of the islands and position at the eastern limits of Shetland make them a good site for finding Siberian rarities. A few American birds have been seen over the years, including most notably an Ovenbird, but it does less well for them than many other Shetland islands.
There are no trees on Skerries other than small ones in gardens. This has pros and cons for the rarity finder. The isles punch well above their weight for Lanceys and PGTips, but regular species on Shetland like Golden Oriole haven't been recorded and the first Firecrest was only last year. Freshwater is restricted to a single small brackish pool on Bruray and one on Grunay.
These days coverage on the isles come from Edwin Tait when he is resident rather than in Lerwick, two or three visiting birders / groups in the autumn and Shetland birders day tripping when there hasn't been much coverage. It is possible to day trip from mainland Shetland on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.