Sheep Island, Argyll

Sheep Island is a small uninhabited island situated off the southern tip of the Kintyre peninsula in Scotland.

Sheep Island

A natural arch on Sheep Island
Location
Sheep Island Sheep Island shown within Argyll and Bute
OS grid reference	NR7328305574
Coordinates	55.29128°N 5.57209°W / 55.29128; -5.57209
Administration
Council area	Argyll and Bute
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Demographics
Population	0

Sheep Island, along with Sanda Island and Glunimore Island, form a small group of islands approximately three kilometres (two miles) south of Kintyre at grid reference NR733055.

Running roughly north to south, the island is around 600 metres (650 yards) long, and is steep and precipitous along the west coast, rising to a maximum height of 41 metres (135 feet). There is a cave on the west coast and a natural arch at the northwest of the island.^[1] A considerable reef of drying rocks surrounds the island and makes landing on the island problematic. There are a number of strong tidal races in the area, Tum ba nach is one that extends north from Sheep Island to around halfway across the Sound of Sanda.

As the name suggests, sheep have traditionally been grazed here, however the island is more notable as the primary breeding ground for puffins in the Clyde. From here the birds are returning to nearby Ailsa Craig, where they were once wiped out. Guillemots and razorbills also nest on Sheep Island.

References

1. "Sheep Island". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 19 November 2018.