"Even before I set foot on it, I was losing my heart to this rock in the ocean." RM Lockley - "The Island". Puffins, Manx Shearwaters, Storm Petrels, Choughs, Peregrines, glowing cliffs of Old Red Sandstone, carpets of wild flowers and a way of life totally divorced from the frenetic pace of the mainland.

These are just a few of the factors which make Skokholm so important to its band of devotees and have caused them to share Lockley's view of the place.

Skokholm is a small island nature reserve off the south west coast of Pembrokeshire, Wales. Along with the neighbouring islands of Skomer and Grassholm, it forms one of the most important seabird breeding sites in Europe.

The flat top of the island is home to 35,000 pairs of Manx Shearwaters, Storm Petrels, large gull colonies, Wheatears, Oystercatchers, Meadow Pipits and Skylarks, while the 150 ft cliffs hold Puffins, Guillemots, Razorbills, Peregrines and Ravens. Britain's most charismatic crow, the Chough, is usually present and occasionally breeds. Grey seals inhabit the rocky coasts, and porpoises and dolphins are regularly seen passing the island. At migration times almost anything can turn up.

In many ways, the way of life on Skokholm has changed little in the past 50 years, and it is this as much as the spectacular scenery and wildlife which draws many visitors to return again and again.
Skokholm is leased to and run by The Wildlife Trust West Wales.