Ynys Feurig (also spelt Ynys Feirig) is the name for a set of three small inter-connected low-lying inshore tidal rocky

islets An islet is a very small, often unnamed island. Most definitions are not precise, but some suggest that an islet has little or no vegetation and cannot support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be permanent ...

(3.1 ha in extent), lying off from the west coast of

Anglesey Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...

North Wales North Wales ( cy, Gogledd Cymru) is a region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders Mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdonia N ...

, just north of the village of

Rhosneigr Rhosneigr (; ) is a village in the south-west of Anglesey, north Wales. It is situated on the A4080 road some 10 km south-east of Holyhead, and is on the Anglesey Coastal Path. From the clock at the centre of the village can be seen RAF V ...

and south of

RAF Valley Royal Air Force Valley or more simply RAF Valley ( cy, Llu Awyr Brenhinol Y Fali) is a Royal Air Force station on the island of Anglesey, Wales, and which is also used as Anglesey Airport. It provides both basic and advanced fast-jet training ...

airfield. They are also known by the English name ''Starvation Island''. The islets are accessible from the mainland at mid-to low tide. The clipper '' Norman Court'' ran aground nearby, in Cymyran Bay.

Seabirds

On the dark-coloured Precambrian outcrops of Ynys Feirig - geograph

The islands are important for their

tern Terns are seabirds in the family Laridae that have a worldwide distribution and are normally found near the sea, rivers, or wetlands. Terns are treated as a subgroup of the family Laridae which includes gulls and skimmers and consists of e ...

colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state' ...

, in particular for roseate tern, for which this is the most regular breeding site on Anglesey, although numbers of breeding pairs are low currently (2005) compared with the past. Because of this the island has been designated as part of the Ynys Feurig, Cemlyn Bay and The Skerries

Special Protection Area A Special Protection Area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certa ...

along with two other nearby sites,

Cemlyn Bay Cemlyn Bay is a bay on the northwest coast of Anglesey, North Wales, approximately 2.5 km west of Wylfa nuclear power station, within the community of Cylch-y-Garn. Separated from the bay by a shingle beach is a brackish lagoon, which is f ...

and The Skerries, and all three are also classed by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area. Ynys Feurig is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Birds interchange regularly between all three sites, and form part of a larger

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...

tern population together with birds at sites in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

such as Rockabill Island. The major threat to the terns here is predation by rats; in 1978 rats killed 17 adult terns including 14 roseate terns, as well as taking all the eggs and young of that year. The RSPB warden the site to protect the terns; management measures they have undertaken here to help increase the roseate tern population include small-scale control of vegetation and provision of nestboxes, although it is thought that the number of breeding pairs at this site is primarily dependent on the overall health of the

population. The site first came to national attention among

birders Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, by ...

in July 2005 when a sooty tern paid a very brief visit, before relocating to The Skerries and

Cemlyn Cemlyn is a village in Anglesey, in north-west Wales. It lies near Cemlyn Bay. It is in the community of Cylch-y-Garn Cylch-y-Garn is a community (Wales), community in Anglesey, Wales, located on the north west coast of the county, west of ...

References

External links

* {{Islands of Anglesey Islands of Anglesey Sites of Special Scientific Interest in West Gwynedd Important Bird Areas of Wales Tidal islands of Wales Llanfair-yn-Neubwll