Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Nature Watch: Revelling in the wild beauty of Dunnet Head

Keith Broomfield explores the wilds and birdlife of the Caithness coast

Keith Broomfield explores the wilds and birdlife of the Caithness coast

The haar billowed around Dunnet Head in Caithness, shrouding the clifftops in a ghostly cloak, before momentarily receding to reveal scores of seabirds on their nesting ledges below.

It was an emotional moment, for this was the culmination of a year-long wildlife journey for my latest book – Wild Quest Britain – which began at mainland Britain’s southernmost edge, Lizard Point in Cornwall, and which had now just ended at Dunnet Head, the most northern point.

Ebb and flow of the sea mist

The sea mist tantalisingly ebbed and flowed, intermittently covering the cliff faces that bounded the Pentland Firth.

Then, the haar pulled back further out to sea, unveiling elegant kittiwakes swooping and swirling in the updrafts of briny air.

Razorbill pair at Dunnet Head. Image: Keith Broomfield

Kittiwakes are such graceful gulls, perfectly proportioned and with a bewitching beauty.

A flock of guillemots flew low over the sea in a goose-like V-formation, using their guile to fly in the most efficient manner possible.

Nearby, a group of several gannets flew past on powerful wings.

I wondered which breeding colony they hailed from – possibilities included St Kilda, the Isle of Noss in Shetland, or Troup Head in Aberdeenshire.

Wandering far during breeding season

Gannets wander far during the breeding season, which is useful for raising chicks as it enables them to seek out the best fishing grounds over a broad area.

A pair of courting razorbills caught my eye on a grassy ledge by the clifftop.

They preened one another and bobbed their heads up and down excitedly as they strengthened their pair bond.

Razorbills at Dunnet Head. Image: Keith Broomfield

In a flash, the female crouched down and the male alighted upon her back to mate.

The act was over in a moment, and he fluttered down beside her to nibble her neck once more with his razor-shaped bill.

While guillemots opt to nest on impossibly small, vertical cliff ledges, razorbills prefer broader shelves to lay their eggs on.

Poorly adapted for life on land

Razorbills live mostly out at sea, only coming ashore to breed, which means they are poorly adapted for life on land, and rather than being able to walk, adopt an ungainly shuffle.

The early 20th century ornithologist Thomas Coward appropriately described razorbills as ‘poor pedestrians’.

Fulmars also huddled in pairs on the ledges.

Fulmar at Dunnet Head. Image: Keith Broomfield

The name fulmar originates from the old Norse ‘foul-gull’ in reference to its habit of regurgitating its stomach contents as a defence mechanism should one approach too close.

Despite this, fulmar vomit was held in great esteem by the inhabitants of St Kilda, and a book on the islands published in the late 17th century noted that “…islanders put great value upon it, and use it as a catholicon for diseases, especially for pains in the bones, stitches, etc”.

Puffins had gathered on a steep grassy bank on one of the cliff faces, which was pock marked with their nesting burrows.

Thrift about to come into flower at Dunnet Head. Image: Keith Broomfield

Then, the haar rolled in once more, concealing them under its wispy veil.

While the puffins and other seabirds had vanished in the mist, their calls continued to drift across the air, so I closed my eyes and revelled in the addictive beauty of their wild cries.

Conversation