Handa Island

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Handa Island (Eilean Shannda)
Waters The Minch , Atlantic
Archipelago British Islands
Geographical location 58 ° 22 ′ 51 ″  N , 5 ° 11 ′ 11 ″  W Coordinates: 58 ° 22 ′ 51 ″  N , 5 ° 11 ′ 11 ″  W
Handa Island (Scotland)
Handa Island
length 2.5 km
width 1.8 km
surface 3.08 km²
Highest elevation Sithean Mòr
123  m
Residents uninhabited

A small rock needle in front of Handa
Mount Quinag and the village of Scourie on the mainland across the Sound of Handa

Handa Island ( Scottish Gaelic Eilean Shannda ) is an uninhabited island off the west coast of Scotland in the Atlantic . The name of the island is old Norwegian .

geography

The island is separated from the mainland by Handa Sound , which is only 350 meters wide at its narrowest point. It is owned by Dr. Jean Balfour, is looked after by the Scottish Wildlife Trust and is connected to the hamlet of Tarbet northeast of the island by a small passenger ferry . Boat traffic exists with the hamlet of Fangamore.

The island is 2.5 km long from east to west and a maximum of 1.8 km wide, and has an area of ​​3.08 km². In the north is the Sithean Mòr with its two peaks and the highest elevation on the island of 123 meters. There are 30 meter high cliffs to the north and west. There are beaches in the flatter south and east of the island.

Handa's minor islands include Glas-Leac in the south, Eilean an Aigeach in the northeast, and Stac an t-Sealbhaig in the north.

Handa is mainly visited by ornithologists because of its avifauna . Guillemots and puffins are particularly native to the island's rocks.

history

Handa was previously used as a burial place. In the south-east the remains of a chapel can still be seen, of which the name Tràigh recalls Teampaill (beach of the temple).

In 1841 the island still had 65 inhabitants, who, however , had to emigrate in 1848 because of the potato rot and the resulting Great Famine . Contradicting this are records of the islanders' eating habits, who also lived on oats , fish and seabirds instead of relying mainly on potatoes .

The island had a council, much like the more remote island of St. Kilda , which met daily. The oldest widow on the island was known as the "queen".

The island is now part of the Scourie Estate and is owned by Dr. Jean Balfour and JC Balfour. It is regulated by the Scottish Wildlife Trust . The island can be visited, but the visitors are subject to strict rules. The number is regulated by only one rubber dinghy ferry going from Tarbet to the island, which can transport around 10 people per trip, so a maximum of around 100 people can enter the island every day.

nature

Four biotopes can be distinguished on Handa :

  • Birds that breed on Handa Island

  • Cliff with brooding guillemots

  • Fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis) at brood feeding

  • Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) on Handa Island

  • Great skua (Skua) (Stercorarius skua) on Handa Island

  • Sign pointing to the breeding sanctuaries

The island is an SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest) and was leased to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds for 25 years . However, the owners did not renew the lease because they wanted a Scottish organization to oversee it. Therefore the Scottish Wildlife Trust took over the administration. Although Handa is protected, 5000 visitors come to the island every year.

The rugged coastline with the freestanding pinnacle The Great Stack make Handa a favorite place for bird watching.

Tarbet ferry port, overlooking Handa

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Haswell-Smith, Hamish: The Scottish Islands . Canongate, Edinburgh 2004, ISBN 1-84195-454-3 .
  2. ^ Ordnance Survey
  3. ^ Scourie Estate . Who Owns Scotland. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved November 11, 2007.

Web links

Commons : Handa Island  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
Wikivoyage: Handa Island  Travel Guide