The Holm of Faray is a small island in

Orkney Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) nort ...

, Scotland, near

Faray Faray ( Old Norse: ''Færey'') is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, lying between Eday and Westray. Previously inhabited, the low-lying island is now a successful grey seal breeding colony. Geography Faray and Holm of Faray are formed of a ...

and

Westray Westray (, sco, Westree) is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland, with a usual resident population of just under 600 people. Its main village is Pierowall, with a heritage centre, the 15th-century Lady Kirk church and pedestrian ferry service ...

, which it lies between. Together with its neighbour Faray, it is designated a

SSSI A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

due to its importance as a haul-out site and breeding area for

grey seal The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is found on both shores of the North Atlantic Ocean. In Latin Halichoerus grypus means "hook-nosed sea pig". It is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or " ...

Geography and geology

Holm of Faray is made up of red

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

. It is effectively a continuation of Faray, but separated from it by Lavey Sound. It has a "head" and a "torso", which are created by East Bight and West Bight, which almost create a separate islet. It is at its highest point. It is on the west side of the Sound of Faray, which separates it from tiny Red Holm, and the North Ayre on

Eday Eday (, sco, Aidee) is one of the islands of Orkney, which are located to the north of the Scottish mainland. One of the North Isles, Eday is about from the Orkney Mainland. With an area of , it is the ninth-largest island of the archipelago ...

which is away. It is separated from Westray by Rapness Sound in the west (an extension of Westray Firth) and Weatherness Sound to the north.

References

Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Orkney Uninhabited islands of Orkney {{Orkney-geo-stub