Skúgvoy ( or Skúvoy , ) is an island in the central
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...
, located to the south of
Sandoy
Sandoy ("Sand Island") is the first of the five southern islands that make up the Faroe chain, the fifth biggest of all the Faroe Islands, an autonomous region of the Kingdom of Denmark. It also refers to the Regions of the Faroe Islands, region ...
.
It is named after the large number of
great skua present on the island (who have a habit of attacking intruders). There is only one settlement on the island:
Skúvoy on the east coast. There are two mountains:
Knúkur (392 m) and
Heyggjurin Mikli (391 m).
History
The
Black Death
The Black Death was a bubonic plague pandemic that occurred in Europe from 1346 to 1353. It was one of the list of epidemics, most fatal pandemics in human history; as many as people perished, perhaps 50% of Europe's 14th century population. ...
in the 14th century killed all the inhabitants except one woman; her cottage can still be seen.
Skúvoy was also the home of
Sigmundur Brestisson
Sigmundur Brestisson (961–1005) was a Faroese Viking chieftain, and was responsible for introducing Christianity to the Faroe Islands in 999. He is one of the main characters of the Færeyinga saga.
According to the Færeyinga saga, emigrant ...
, the hero of the
Færeyinga saga
''Færeyinga saga'' (; Danish: ''Færingesagaen''), the saga of the Faroe Islanders, is the story of how the Faroes were converted to Christianity and became a part of Norway.
Summary
The saga was written in Iceland shortly after 1200. The auth ...
(Saga of the Faroese).
Bird habitat
There are 300–400 m cliffs along the west coast, which are home to many
guillemots. Egg harvesting takes place in early June, though this occurs in the first week only so as to allow the guillemots to lay again. The island has been identified as an
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations.
IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
by
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...
because of its significance as a breeding site for
seabird
Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adaptation, adapted to life within the marine ecosystem, marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent ...
s, especially
northern fulmars (50,000 pairs),
Manx shearwater
The Manx shearwater (''Puffinus puffinus'') 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 ...
s (10,000 pairs),
European storm petrels (20,000 pairs),
great skuas (25 pairs),
Atlantic puffin
The Atlantic puffin ('), also known as the common puffin, is a species of seabird in the auk family (biology), family. It is the only puffin native to the Atlantic Ocean; two related species, the tufted puffin and the horned puffin being found ...
s (40,000 pairs),
common guillemots (135,000 pairs) and
black guillemot
The black guillemot or tystie (''Cepphus grylle'') is a medium-sized seabird of the Alcidae family, native throughout northern Atlantic coasts and eastern North American coasts. It is resident in much of its range, but large populations from the ...
s (150 pairs), as well as 40 breeding pairs of
Eurasian whimbrel
The Eurasian or common whimbrel (''Numenius phaeopus''), also known as the white-rumped whimbrel in North America, is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae. It is one of the most widespread of the curlews, breeding across much of subarctic Pal ...
s.
[BirdLife International. (2012). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Skúvoy. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 2012-02-23.]
File:Ferry Sandur-Skuvoy.JPG, The Skúgvoy ferry in Sandur harbour
File:Faroe stamp 373 skuvoy.jpg, Stamp FR 373 of Postverk Føroya
Issued: 22 May 2000
Photo: Per á Hædd
File:Skuvoy map.jpg, Map of Skúgvoy
File:Skúvoy helicopter 2019.jpg, Skúgvoy village
References
External links
personal websitewith 9 aerial photos of Skúgvoy
Islands of the Faroe Islands
Important Bird Areas of the Faroe Islands
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