Kerrera has an abundance of incredible wildlife dotted all over the island and in the rich surrounding waters. We love seeing photos of the flora and fauna on Kerrera- please share your photos with us by email to aideen@isleofkerrera.org, or on twitter by using the #Kerrera or sending to @IKDT16
Apart from the many hundred farmed sheep and dozens of cows, we have some large wild mammals as well. You’ll spot herds of wild goats all over the south part of the island and we have a small group of sika deer who roam the small forest on the southeastern corner.
If you’re lucky you can spot one of the stars of the Scottish wildlife show, the humble otter, at various spots on Kerrera. There’s been regular sightings close to the ferry slipway and they can be seen feeding oftentimes in Castle Bay. Otters need to clean their coats regularly in fresh water so the many streams leading to the sea on Kerrera provide a nice bath for them.
More elusive but still fairly plentiful are the weasel, the mink and the fox, who are generally the scourge of the chicken keeper. Seeing an easy meal in our egg providing friends, they have been known to kill a whole flock in one sitting.
You can regularly spot large groups of harbour and grey seals lounging on Cutter Rock. If your walking the south circuit, just off the coast at the forest you’ll see some rocky islands with a white lighthouse. The grey blobs seen from the road are seals but you can get closer or use binoculars for a better look.
If you’re very lucky in a ‘right place, right time’ sort of way, you can see dolphin pods off the coast as well as whales and basking sharks. This group are best explored by using one of the many excellent boat tours out of Oban.
Kerrera is also blessed with a huge variety of resident and visiting birds. From the largest bird of prey in Europe, the white tip sea eagle and the equally impressive golden eagle doing sorties from their nesting grounds on Mull to the tiny house sparrows and robins that live and forage here all year round.
Greylag and canada geese are regular visiting breeders along with cuckoos and swallows, and there are a plethora of buzzards as well as hen harriers and kestrels. Herons prowl the shores all year round and we have plenty of noisy oyster catchers that nest all around the shoreline.
Kerrera has some excellent exposure for Geologists and is a hot spot for visiting students who map the island each summer. We're working on an informative and interesting overview of the rocks of Kerrera and hope to get it live soon!
Our website and nature guide has been generously funded by: