Where is Papa Stour marine cSAC? |
The Shetland Islands form the northernmost part of the British Isles. They are almost equidistant between Aberdeen in Scotland, Bergen in Norway and Torshavn in Faroe. Most of the archipelago is exposed to gales from the North Atlantic, however there are areas of relative calm provided by the highly indented coastline. This is made up of many small islands, voes, geos (steep-sided inlets), cliffs, caves and skerries.
The development of the oil industry in the 1970s has been very important to the economy of Shetland and has lead to an increase in population in the islands as a whole. There are now approximately 22000 people living in Shetland. Other important economic activities include fishing, mariculture and crofting. Papa Stour marine cSAC includes part of the coast on the Mainland at Sandness and the island of Papa Stour and its associated skerries. Sandness is a small area on the western coast of Shetland. It includes the settlements at Huxter, Melby and Norby. The coastline consists of sandy beaches, boulders and rocky shores, moderately exposed to weather from the North Atlantic. Part of the coastline at Sandness is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Papa Stour is an island off the western coast of Mainland, Shetland. The eastern side of the island is fertile and low lying compared to the open moorland and steep cliffs on the west side. The coastline consists mainly of rocky shores with caves, arches, stacks and skerries, although the shores in the voes have areas of sand and mud. Part of Papa Stour is designated as an SSSI. The conservation features of Papa Stour cSAC are the Annex I habitats 'reefs' and 'submerged and partly submerged sea caves'. The term conservation feature refers to natural or semi-natural habitats for which an SAC has been selected. Species considered typical of these habitats may also be considered as conservation features.
There are also numerous submerged and partly submerged sea caves within Papa Stour cSAC. These are found in very wave exposed conditions and include large areas of vertical and overhanging rock. Shallow or intertidal caves may have sediment, cobble or boulder floors and be subject to wave surge and scour, whilst deeper caves with less water movement may accumulate silt on the cave floor. The sea caves within the cSAC occur around most of the coast of the island of Papa Stour. For more information on the culture, geology, history and archaeology of Papa Stour together with details on how to get there, visit the Papa Stour website. |
The reefs of Papa Stour are rocky marine areas which provide a habitat for a variety of biological communities. They are extremely variable in structure and in the communities they support as a result of geology, exposure to wave action, enhanced tidal streams and water temperature. Both subtidal and intertidal reefs are included within Papa Stour cSAC. The intertidal reefs are composed mainly of boulder and rock, whilst the subtidal reefs tend to be dominated in the shallows by attached kelp communities, and in the deeper areas by faunal turfs and algal crusts.