Tory is off the coast of Donegal and is one of the most northerly parts of ireland. It has a few 100 inhabitants, is about 7 miles from the shore and is about 1 mile by 3 in area. There are no trees and several high cliffs. Absent from Tory are rats, foxes, stoats, rooks and hedgehogs making it suitable for ground nesting birds. The faster boat from Magheroarty takes about 30 minutes.
On the trip out had one leaches storm petrel, a family of eider and a white-winged gull (Iceland I think). On the island corncrakes could be heard from the middle of the the village but were very elusive to see. The west side of the island is relatively low-lying with several shingle beaches and wetland bog. Here are nesting sandwich, common and a few little terns, and ringed plover. On the wetlands are breeding oystercatchers and redshanks. Wheatears breed in the rocky areas and in July there were dozens of juveniles. Common gulls are nesting in some of the chimney pots in the village and the odd fat pheasant can be seen in the meadows. The west side of the island is drier and has several high cliffs. Here can be seen breeding fulmars, herring gulls, great black-backed gulls, guillemots, razorbills, puffins, black guillemots, shags, cormorants, possibly some gannets (though i saw no actual nests). There were also a pair of ravens and grey crows (an adult and two juvs). There were wrens, meadow pipits, rock pipits, swallows (one swift seen), a robin, wagtails etc - thrushes were lacking. Seawatching turned up a pod of three bottlenose dolphins (also a bottlenose seen regularly at the harbour), a few petrel sp, and a few manx shearwaters only (wind was relatively calm and southerly). There was one lurking whimbrel associating with the nesting redshanks and oystercatchers - probably a long stayer (but you never know)...genuine rock doves and choughs ply the cliffs. The scenery is breathtaking, hotel is good (lobster excellent), the people friendly (the king gives regular impromptu audiences), decent weather and no pub closing time - what more could you ask for?
Congratulations..now thatīs a trip Iīd really like to do....where did you stay on the island? A friend once saw Corncrakes there, he said one was walking about at night just outside the cottage he stayed in, and he could see it by lamplight. Is the boat-trip child-friendly?
Excellent report from an interesting and spectacular place.