Muckle Skerry

Not to be confused with Muckle Holm (disambiguation).

Muckle Skerry is the largest of the Pentland Skerries that lie off the north coast of Scotland. It is home to the Pentland Skerries Lighthouse.

Aerial photograph of Muckle Skerry

Pentland Skerries High Light

Pentland Skerries High and Low Lighthouses
Location	Muckle Skerry Pentland Skerries Orkney Scotland United Kingdom
Coordinates	58.690221°N 2.924735°W / 58.690221; -2.924735
Tower
Constructed	1794
Built by	Thomas Smith, Robert Stevenson
Construction	stone tower
Automated	1994
Height	36 m (118 ft)
Shape	cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern
Markings	white tower, black lantern, ochre trim
Power source	solar power
Operator	Northern Lighthouse Board
Light
First lit	1820s rebuilt
Focal height	52 m (171 ft)
Intensity	710,000 candela
Range	23 nmi (43 km)
Characteristic	Fl (3) W 30 s

Geography

Muckle Skerry lies in the Pentland Firth at grid reference ND464782. It is the westernmost of the skerries. At one kilometre (five furlongs) long and rising to an elevation of 20 metres (65 feet) above sea level, it is sizable enough to be considered an island. However, the notoriously bad weather of the firth has historically rendered Muckle Skerry uninhabitable and as such it is more often thought of as a skerry.

Important Bird Area

The skerry is part of the Pentland Firth Islands Important Bird Area (IBA), so designated by BirdLife International because it supports significant breeding populations of seabirds.

Pentland Skerries Lighthouse

Pentland Skerries Lighthouse was constructed in 1794 by the Commissioners of the Northern Lights. The engineers were Thomas Smith and his stepson Robert Stevenson (this was the first light that Stevenson officially worked on).

See also

• List of lighthouses in Scotland
• List of Northern Lighthouse Board lighthouses

External links

• Pentland Skerries Northern Lighthouse Board
• Northern Lighthouse Board