Cormorant
1 – Quick Facts
The name cormorant is derived from the Latin ‘corvus marinus’, which means ‘sea crow’
They often have their wings half stretched out. They are said to be drying them.
Both the mothers and fathers take turns sitting on the eggs
They build nests on rocky crags to protect their young.
2 – Cormorant or Shag?
When their feathers are reflected in the sun the shag tens to look green and the cormorant blue.
During breeding season shags have crests which make them easily identifiable.
3 – Appearance
Adults are large and black with a hint of bluish/green. They have long necks and are often said to look reptilian.
They have a hook-tipped bill and striking green coloured eyes.
Around the bill there is white and yellow skin.
Younger cormorants are brown with white under the bill.
Minke Whale
1 – Basking Shark
Second largest living fish (whale shark is first!)
Normally between 6-8 meters in length
They are slow moving fish that ‘filter feed’ at the surface of the water. This gave them their name as it appears they are basking in the warmer water!
Skin is normally greyish brown and mottled (spots or colours mixed together)
2 – Minke Whale
Typically 8.5-9 meters long and weigh 10 tonnes.
Usually seen as an individual or a cow (female) with a calf (baby)
The minke whales rarely breech (jump out of water) so when their blow is small and quite indistinct.
Diet includes fish, squid and krill.
Mostly blue black with tips of flippers and underbelly white.
3 – Killer Whale (Orca)
There are 9 that live year round of the west coast of Scotland. These ‘9’ whales, nicknamed the ‘West Coast community,’ do not interact with the migratory whales and no calf has been been recorded.
The large black dorsal fin make them easy to recognise. An adult male dorsal can reach 6 foot. (1.8 meters!)
Can travel at speeds of 35mph.
Gannets
1 – Quick Facts
Around 60% of Europe’s Gannets are found in Scotland
They are Britain’s largest seabird, with a wingspan of 165-180cm
They arrive at their colonies from January onwards and leave between August and October
The gannets nostrils are found inside it’s mouth!
2 – Breeding and Diet
They breed near coastal cliffs, ledges and remote areas.
When the young do leave the nest they need to slim down before they can dive for food!
They feed by flying high then diving into the sea for fish. They can be travelling as fast as 60mph when they hit the water!
They like to feed in large groups. Can sometimes be up to 1000 birds!
3 – Appearance
Most are white with black tips on the wings. The distinctive yellow mark on their head makes them easier to spot.There are one species who are brown however
They have long pointed wings, talk and beak
When gannet chicks first hatch they are featherless, as well as being blue or black in colour.
4 – Baby Gannets
The Hebridean tradition of Guga hunting has been part of the Isle of Lewis life since around the 15th Century. Every August ten men from Ness set out. Hunted on Sula Sgeir, an islet 40 miles north of Lewis, chicks are killed with a stick, decapitated, singed in fire and then pickled. A delicacy enjoyed by islanders for hundreds of years.
Residents of the district of Ness are given a licence to kill 2,000 birds annually. The only place in Britain where hunting seabirds is still allowed after the 1954 ban.
Traditionally the preserved birds formed an essential part of the winter diet for the people of Ness. Today the birds are sold for 20 a brace on the quayside on the crew’s return, a delicacy rather than a staple.
The taste is described as similar to duck or mackerel.
Eagles
1 – Golden Eagles
wingspan – 190 – 225 cm
There are around 508 pairs of golden eagles in Scotland
30 years is around the average life expectancy of a golden eagle
A baby eagle is called an eaglet.
Whilst diving for food they can travel upto speeds of 150mph!
The golden eagle begins breeding in late winter; starting with nest building. Eggs are laid in spring and after about six weeks of incubation, chicks can hatch. Around ten weeks later the young may leave the nest and take their first flights.
They are highly territorial and tend to return to the same territory for many years, sometimes building a few nests and alternating.
The golden eagle is a huge bird, beaten only in size by the white tailed eagle
They are a dark brown colour with lighter golden brown on their heads and necks
When gliding it tends to hold it’s wings in a V shape. It’s wingspan is around 6-7.5ft (1.8-2.2m)
2 – Sea Eagles
wingspan – 190 – 240 cm
The sea eagle is commonly found near cliffs.
The adult Sea Eagle has a wingspan of 8 foot and eats fish, sea birds, rabbits and other small birds. Seen in coastal areas and large lochs.
Seals
1 – Common or Harbour Seal
They have a shorter and rounder muzzle than grey seals and on land their nostrils form a V shape.
They have attractive coats, with spots and rings. The colour can be anything between dark brown to pale grey-white.
Generally, out of the water they keep their distance from other seals.
2 – Grey Seal
Often float with just their heads out of the water and nose pointing skywards, called ‘bottling’.
Males are often TWICE the size as females
On land, they tend to huddle together in groups.
They have a deeper and longer face than common seals. Their nostrils also are parallel slits.
Dolphins
1 – A group of dolphins is called a pod or school. There are around 12 dolphins in each pod!
A superpod is more than 12…it can be hundreds of dolphins!
2 – They are found normally between the months of April to November in the Hebrides
They are attracted by the vibrations by the engine and often follow at the bow of the boat.
Cetaceans in Skye
3 – The Common Dolphin
The common dolphins travel in much larger pods than the Bottlenose; sometime the superpod contains hundreds of dolphins
The have distinctive hourglass marking on their side of tan or yellowish-tan on the lower side of the body, becoming pale grey behind fin.
Very playful dolphins and can be seen breaching (jumping out of water) often.
4 – Bottlenose Dolphin
3-4 meters long Scottish Bottlesnoses are larger than the bottlenose dolphins found in Florida!
Their colouring varies from dark grey to grey/brown on the upper body and have very pale grey, almost white, underbellies.
A distinctive feature is their lower jaw sticking out further than the upper jaw.
Their diet includes Atlantic salmon
5 – Harbour Porpoise
Much smaller than the dolphins, porpoises are around 1.2m long.
Doesn’t break the surface for long but is often found in shallow waters
Opposed to the dolphins fin that is curved backwards, the porpoises is small, triangular and upright
The number of porpoises has dropped due to getting caught in fishing nets and attacks from bottlenose dolphins or whales.
Basking Sharks
They are slow moving fish that ‘filter feed’ at the surface of the water. This gave them their name as it appears they are basking in the warmer water!
Skin is normally greyish brown and mottled (spots or colours mixed together)