Exploring the living seas around
Orkney’s North Isles
This ‘diver’s eye’ virtual tour offers a unique insight into the underwater environment of the North Isles, revealing the rich diversity of habitats in Orkney waters and the wealth of marine life that they support.
We visit eight sites spread across the North Isles. On each island’s page, a short film takes you on a journey to discover the abundance of life and history that exists along the coasts and in nearby shallow waters. The tour takes in beds of kelp, maerl and eelgrass, vertical rock walls, submarine caves, seabird cities, abandoned islands, lighthouses and shipwrecks. Still photographs and links to external sites on each page give access to extra information enabling you to dive in deeper and learn more about the living seas of the North Isles.
The Orkney mainland has long been famed for its archaeology and the underwater naval history of Scapa Flow. Perhaps less well known are the intriguing North Isles of the Orkney archipelago, a remarkable group of 12 inhabited islands with rich histories and spectacular scenery, teeming with wildlife above and below the water. Click on each virtual dive site on the map below to find out more.
