Skokholm
Encyclopedia
Skokholm is an uninhabited island 2.5 miles (4 km) off the coast of south west Pembrokeshire
in Wales
, lying south of the neighbouring island of Skomer
. The whole island is a Site of Special Scientific Interest
as is Skomer. The surrounding waters are a marine reserve, all part of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park
. It is the fourth largest of Wales' offshore islands.
, its cliffs stand between 70 feet (21.3 m) in the northeast, to 160 feet (48.8 m) in the southwest. Battered by storms, the high cliffs and isolated nature of the island makes it a haven for seabirds. There is a rock outcrop close to the centre of the island, which provides shelter to the island's only structures.
for "Wooded Island," very similar to the Swedish
capital name Stockholm
, named by the Vikings who visited the Bristol Channel
.
An undated charter is to be found in the British Museum by which William Marshal the Younger, Earl of Pembroke 1219-31, grants to a certain Gilbert de Vale land in Ireland in exchange for lands in Pembrokeshire, including the island of 'Scoghholm'.. The revenue from the island from 1324 to 1472 was recorded in Ministerial Accounts. Some years later, the islands were in the hands of Sir John Perrott, natural son of Henry VIII. The island was bought for £300 in 1646 by William Philipps, a barrister
, and it was kept in the family for the next 360 years. In 2005 his descendant Mrs. Osra Lloyd-Philipps (1920 - 24 March 2005) of Dale Castle
died. The trustees of the estate decided to offer the island for sale, with first refusal going to the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, who had managed the island for the last 50 years on their behalf. After a large fundraising effort, the island was successfully purchased in April 2006 for £650,000, and designated a national nature reserve in December 2008.
; its prime function was the ringing of wild birds of resident, visiting or migrating species and research. Lockley started the Pembrokeshire Bird Protection Society in 1938, now incorporated in the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales. In 1948 the West Wales Field Society (WWFC), also now Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, first took the Lease of Skokholm from the owners of the Dale Castle Estate. The WWFC followed on the Lease by Ronald Lockley which had run from 1927 but direct involvement commenced two years earlier when in 1946 the Bird Observatory was re-opened after the war. Ringing on Skokholm ceased from 1976. During the period of radar studies of migration around 1960 it became clear that bird movements as observed at the Observatories were by no means representative of the whole and, inevitably, the significance of the Observatories in the study of migration waned. Skokholm had been the site of the most thorough British studies of the Storm Petrel and Razorbill amongst the seabirds and the Oystercatcher and the Wheatear amongst the landbirds. 'There can be few other islands anywhere in the world that can boast the continuity of biological recordings, save for wartime years, that has taken place on Skokholm.' John Fursdon, Warden 1946.
, with the wetter areas graded as heath and some salt marsh
. All of these areas house common natural species including Three-lobed Water Crowfoot, Tree Mallow, Marsh St. John’s Wort
, Small Nettle, and Sea Campion.
who published a series of papers based on his research on the island. Skokholm is the type locality for the corticioid
species Trechispora clanculare (Park.-Rhodes) K.H. Larss., described as new to science from the island where it was first found in a puffin
burrow. Due to its isolated nature, Skokholm houses British nationally scarce lichen
s including Golden Hair lichen (Teloschistes flavicans)
.
, a pioneering ornithologist
, especially famous for his work on puffin
s and shearwater
s, wrote many books featuring Skokholm, where he lived and researched for many years.
Today Skokholm is the site of the third largest Manx shearwater
colony (15% of world population), and 20% of Europe's population of storm-petrel
s, as well as 4,500 puffin
s and 2000 guillemot
s and razorbill
s. There are also large colonies of Lesser Black-backed Gull
s, Herring Gulls and Great Black-backed Gull
s. The island is a breeding site for Oystercatcher
s, Chough
, Skylark
and Wheatear
.
In addition to the impressive numbers of breeding seabirds, it is a good UK site for passage migrants, including Chiffchaff
, Willow Warbler
s, Whitethroat
, Redstart
, and Spotted and Pied Flycatchers.
After the Norman
invasion of north Pembrokeshire led by Robert fitz Martin
, the Normans built a rabbit
farm on the island, later revived during the Victorian
era. As a result, the island houses an example of long-term rabbit-maintained grass. House mice were accidentally introduced in the late 19th century.
was built in 1776, and then rebuilt at its present site in 1861. The lighthouse forms a triangle of protection into Milford Haven
along with the lighthouses at South Bishop and the Smalls. Automated in 1983, it is now monitored and controlled from the Trinity House
Operations Control Centre at Harwich
in Essex
.
The original farm cottage restored by Lockley is now a Grade2 listed building, while the surrounding farm buildings are being converted to accommodation units.
Connecting boats leave from Martin's Haven
, with booked visitors able to stay on this island in basic accommodation. In 2010, the trust announced improvements to the island's landing jetty to allow easier access, with a £38,250 development project funded by Crown Estates and RWE Npower.
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire is a county in the south west of Wales. It borders Carmarthenshire to the east and Ceredigion to the north east. The county town is Haverfordwest where Pembrokeshire County Council is headquartered....
in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, lying south of the neighbouring island of Skomer
Skomer
Skomer is a 2.92 km² island off the coast of southwest Wales, one of a chain lying within a kilometre off the Pembrokeshire coast and separated from the mainland by the treacherous waters of Jack Sound....
. The whole island is a Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
as is Skomer. The surrounding waters are a marine reserve, all part of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park
Pembrokeshire Coast National Park
Pembrokeshire Coast National Park is a national park along the Pembrokeshire coast in West Wales.It was established as a National Park in 1952, and is the only one in the United Kingdom to have been designated primarily because of its spectacular coastline...
. It is the fourth largest of Wales' offshore islands.
Geography
At its greatest, Skokholm is 1 miles (1.6 km) long and 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) wide, covering 100 ha (0.386102158592535 sq mi). Made up of Old Red SandstoneOld Red Sandstone
The Old Red Sandstone is a British rock formation of considerable importance to early paleontology. For convenience the short version of the term, 'ORS' is often used in literature on the subject.-Sedimentology:...
, its cliffs stand between 70 feet (21.3 m) in the northeast, to 160 feet (48.8 m) in the southwest. Battered by storms, the high cliffs and isolated nature of the island makes it a haven for seabirds. There is a rock outcrop close to the centre of the island, which provides shelter to the island's only structures.
Name and ownership
Skokholm is NorseOld Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
for "Wooded Island," very similar to the Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
capital name Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, named by the Vikings who visited the Bristol Channel
Bristol Channel
The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Severn to the North Atlantic Ocean...
.
An undated charter is to be found in the British Museum by which William Marshal the Younger, Earl of Pembroke 1219-31, grants to a certain Gilbert de Vale land in Ireland in exchange for lands in Pembrokeshire, including the island of 'Scoghholm'.. The revenue from the island from 1324 to 1472 was recorded in Ministerial Accounts. Some years later, the islands were in the hands of Sir John Perrott, natural son of Henry VIII. The island was bought for £300 in 1646 by William Philipps, a barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
, and it was kept in the family for the next 360 years. In 2005 his descendant Mrs. Osra Lloyd-Philipps (1920 - 24 March 2005) of Dale Castle
Dale Castle
Dale Castle is a 13th century castle located close to the village of Dale in Pembrokeshire, Wales.Built after the English invasion of South Wales, the castle was originally built by the de Vales, descendants of a knight who had accompanied Robert fitz Martin on his invasion of north Pembrokeshire...
died. The trustees of the estate decided to offer the island for sale, with first refusal going to the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, who had managed the island for the last 50 years on their behalf. After a large fundraising effort, the island was successfully purchased in April 2006 for £650,000, and designated a national nature reserve in December 2008.
Bird Observatory
In 1933 Skokholm was functioning as a Bird Observatory, the first in Britain, founded by Ronald LockleyRonald Lockley
Ronald Mathias Lockley was a Welsh naturalist and author who spent much of his later life in New Zealand. He wrote over fifty books, including The Private Life of the Rabbit , which played an important role in the plot development of Richard Adams' famous book Watership Down...
; its prime function was the ringing of wild birds of resident, visiting or migrating species and research. Lockley started the Pembrokeshire Bird Protection Society in 1938, now incorporated in the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales. In 1948 the West Wales Field Society (WWFC), also now Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, first took the Lease of Skokholm from the owners of the Dale Castle Estate. The WWFC followed on the Lease by Ronald Lockley which had run from 1927 but direct involvement commenced two years earlier when in 1946 the Bird Observatory was re-opened after the war. Ringing on Skokholm ceased from 1976. During the period of radar studies of migration around 1960 it became clear that bird movements as observed at the Observatories were by no means representative of the whole and, inevitably, the significance of the Observatories in the study of migration waned. Skokholm had been the site of the most thorough British studies of the Storm Petrel and Razorbill amongst the seabirds and the Oystercatcher and the Wheatear amongst the landbirds. 'There can be few other islands anywhere in the world that can boast the continuity of biological recordings, save for wartime years, that has taken place on Skokholm.' John Fursdon, Warden 1946.
Flora
Most of Skokholm is simple sub-maritime grasslandGrassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
, with the wetter areas graded as heath and some salt marsh
Salt marsh
A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...
. All of these areas house common natural species including Three-lobed Water Crowfoot, Tree Mallow, Marsh St. John’s Wort
St John's wort
St John's wort is the plant species Hypericum perforatum, and is also known as Tipton's Weed, Chase-devil, or Klamath weed....
, Small Nettle, and Sea Campion.
Fungi
Larger fungi were extensively studied in the 1940s and 1950s by Frederick Parker-RhodesFrederick Parker-Rhodes
Frederick Parker-Rhodes was an English linguist, plant pathologist, computer scientist, mathematician, mystic, and mycologist.-Background & education:...
who published a series of papers based on his research on the island. Skokholm is the type locality for the corticioid
Corticioid fungi
The corticioid fungi are a group of fungi in the Basidiomycota typically having effused, smooth basidiocarps that are formed on the undersides of dead attached or fallen branches. They are sometimes colloquially called crust fungi or patch fungi...
species Trechispora clanculare (Park.-Rhodes) K.H. Larss., described as new to science from the island where it was first found in a puffin
Puffin
Puffins are any of three small species of auk in the bird genus Fratercula with a brightly coloured beak during the breeding season. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among...
burrow. Due to its isolated nature, Skokholm houses British nationally scarce lichen
Lichen
Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...
s including Golden Hair lichen (Teloschistes flavicans)
Teloschistes
Teloschistes is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Teloschistaceae.-External links:*...
.
Bird life and larger fauna
Ronald LockleyRonald Lockley
Ronald Mathias Lockley was a Welsh naturalist and author who spent much of his later life in New Zealand. He wrote over fifty books, including The Private Life of the Rabbit , which played an important role in the plot development of Richard Adams' famous book Watership Down...
, a pioneering ornithologist
Ornithology
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds...
, especially famous for his work on puffin
Puffin
Puffins are any of three small species of auk in the bird genus Fratercula with a brightly coloured beak during the breeding season. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among...
s and shearwater
Shearwater
Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged seabirds. There are more than 30 species of shearwaters, a few larger ones in the genus Calonectris and many smaller species in the genus Puffinus...
s, wrote many books featuring Skokholm, where he lived and researched for many years.
Today Skokholm is the site of the third largest Manx shearwater
Manx Shearwater
The Manx Shearwater is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. The scientific name of this species records a name shift: Manx Shearwaters were called Manks Puffins in the 17th century. Puffin is an Anglo-Norman word for the cured carcasses of nestling shearwaters...
colony (15% of world population), and 20% of Europe's population of storm-petrel
Storm-petrel
Storm petrels are seabirds in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. These smallest of seabirds feed on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.Storm petrels have a cosmopolitan...
s, as well as 4,500 puffin
Puffin
Puffins are any of three small species of auk in the bird genus Fratercula with a brightly coloured beak during the breeding season. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among...
s and 2000 guillemot
Guillemot
Guillemots is the common name for several species of seabird in the auk family . In British use, the term comprises two genera: Uria and Cepphus. In North America the Uria species are called "murres" and only the Cepphus species are called "guillemots"...
s and razorbill
Razorbill
The Razorbill is colonial seabird that will only come to land in order to breed. It is the largest living member of the Auk family. This agile bird will choose only one partner for life and females will lay one egg per year. Razorbills will nest along coastal cliffs in enclosed or slightly exposed...
s. There are also large colonies of Lesser Black-backed Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
The Lesser Black-backed Gull is a large gull that breeds on the Atlantic coasts of Europe. It is migratory, wintering from the British Isles south to West Africa...
s, Herring Gulls and Great Black-backed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
The Great Black-backed Gull is the largest gull in the world, which breeds on the European and North American coasts and islands of the North Atlantic...
s. The island is a breeding site for Oystercatcher
Oystercatcher
The oystercatchers are a group of waders; they form the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, Haematopus. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia...
s, Chough
Chough
The Red-billed Chough or Chough , Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax, is a bird in the crow family; it is one of only two species in the genus Pyrrhocorax...
, Skylark
Skylark
The Skylark is a small passerine bird species. This lark breeds across most of Europe and Asia and in the mountains of north Africa. It is mainly resident in the west of its range, but eastern populations are more migratory, moving further south in winter. Even in the milder west of its range,...
and Wheatear
Wheatear
The wheatears are passerine birds of the genus Oenanthe. They were formerly considered to be members of the thrush family Turdidae, but are now more commonly placed in the flycatcher family Muscicapidae...
.
In addition to the impressive numbers of breeding seabirds, it is a good UK site for passage migrants, including Chiffchaff
Chiffchaff
The Common Chiffchaff, or simply the Chiffchaff, is a common and widespread leaf-warbler which breeds in open woodlands throughout northern and temperate Europe and Asia....
, Willow Warbler
Willow Warbler
The Willow Warbler is a very common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe and Asia, from Ireland east to the Anadyr River basin in eastern Siberia...
s, Whitethroat
Whitethroat
The Common Whitethroat, Sylvia communis, is a common and widespread typical warbler which breeds throughout Europe and across much of temperate western Asia. This small passerine bird is strongly migratory, and winters in tropical Africa, Arabia and Pakistan.This is one of several Sylvia species...
, Redstart
Redstart
Redstarts are a group of small Old World birds. They were formerly classified in the thrush family , but are now known to be part of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae...
, and Spotted and Pied Flycatchers.
After the Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
invasion of north Pembrokeshire led by Robert fitz Martin
Robert fitz Martin
Robert fitz Martin was a Norman knight and first Lord of Cemais, Wales.-Family background:Robert fitz Martin was born some time in the late 11th century to Geva de Burci, heiress of Serlo de Burci, and an otherwise unknown man called Martin.Geva de Burci's second husband was William de Falaise,...
, the Normans built a rabbit
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
farm on the island, later revived during the Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
era. As a result, the island houses an example of long-term rabbit-maintained grass. House mice were accidentally introduced in the late 19th century.
Buildings
The first Skokholm LighthouseSkokholm Lighthouse
Skokholm Lighthouse is a lighthouse found on the small Welsh island of Skokholm, just off the south-west coast of Pembrokeshire.Skokholm island, a Site of Special Scientific Interest, is owned and managed by the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales...
was built in 1776, and then rebuilt at its present site in 1861. The lighthouse forms a triangle of protection into Milford Haven
Milford Haven
Milford Haven is a town and community in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It is situated on the north side of the Milford Haven Waterway, a natural harbour used as a port since the Middle Ages. The town was founded in 1790 on the north side of the Waterway, from which it takes its name...
along with the lighthouses at South Bishop and the Smalls. Automated in 1983, it is now monitored and controlled from the Trinity House
Trinity House
The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond is the official General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales and other British territorial waters...
Operations Control Centre at Harwich
Harwich
Harwich is a town in Essex, England and one of the Haven ports, located on the coast with the North Sea to the east. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the northeast, Ipswich to the northwest, Colchester to the southwest and Clacton-on-Sea to the south...
in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
.
The original farm cottage restored by Lockley is now a Grade2 listed building, while the surrounding farm buildings are being converted to accommodation units.
Transport
After their purchase of the island, and taking into account the poor and dilapidated nature of the island's infrastructure, presently Skokholm may only be visited by prior arrangement with the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales.Connecting boats leave from Martin's Haven
Martin's Haven
Martin’s Haven is a small bay in Pembrokeshire, Wales, UK. It is located on the Dale Peninsula, with views across St Bride's Bay towards St David's. Its tiny pebble and shingle beach has a stone slipway which acts as an embarkation point for the ferry which visits the nearby island of Skomer, a...
, with booked visitors able to stay on this island in basic accommodation. In 2010, the trust announced improvements to the island's landing jetty to allow easier access, with a £38,250 development project funded by Crown Estates and RWE Npower.