St Kilda World Heritage Site
We have a confirmed outbreak of avian flu (H5N1) affecting seabirds on St Kilda. The risk to human health is very low but please see the guidance on how to protect the seabirds and keep yourself safe in the Planning Your Visit section.
About this place
Fragments of the past haunt these islands, now home to the UK’s largest colony of Atlantic puffins
- The UK’s only dual UNESCO World Heritage Site, and one of only 39 in the world.
- Home to nearly 1 million seabirds, including the UK’s largest colony of Atlantic puffins.
- Evacuated on 29 August 1930 after the remaining 36 islanders voted to leave as their way of life was no longer sustainable.
- St Kilda has its own unique wren, as well as a sub-species of mouse which is twice the size of a British fieldmouse.
There is no place like St Kilda. Towering out of the storm-tossed waters of the Atlantic Ocean, its cliffs and sea stacks clamour with the cries of hundreds of thousands of seabirds.
Internationally recognised for its birdlife, St Kilda is no less famous for its human history. A community existed here for at least 4,000 years, exploiting the dense colonies of gannets, fulmars and puffins for food, feathers and oil.
The final 36 islanders were evacuated in 1930. Now uninhabited, visitors can brave the weather to sail to the ‘islands at the edge of the world’ for the experience of a lifetime.
Highlights
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Did you know?
Seabirds formed a major part of the St Kildan diet, especially gannets, fulmars and puffins. At one time it was estimated that each person on St Kilda ate 115 fulmars every year. In 1876 it was said that the islanders took 89,600 puffins for food and feathers.
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