Auk "raft", Hornøya, Barents Sea, Troms og Finnmark, Norway
Hornøya is a small uninhabited island lying in the Barents Sea in Troms og Finnmark in the extreme north east of Norway. It lies just east of the larger island of Vardøya where the town of Vardø is located. The island is the easternmost point of Norway.
Vardø Lighthouse is situated at the highest point of the island, at an elevation of 213 feet above sea level, and it protects the shipping lanes around the town of Vardø.
Daily boat trips run to Hornøya between 1st March and 1st September from Vardø harbour offering the chance to spend several hours on the island.
The seabird colony at Hornøya hosts approximately 100,000 seabirds of up to 11 breeding species. The cliffs are dominated by Common Guillemot, Razorbill, Puffin and Kittiwake. Around 500 pairs of Brünnich´s Guillemots, an auk distributed across the polar and sub-polar regions of the Northern Hemisphere, breed between the Common Guillemots. During the seabird breeding season, visitors to Hornøya have a good chance of seeing White-tailed Eagle and Gyrfalcon hunting along the cliffs.
In addition to the huge number of birds, Hornøya is also a good location to see Atlantic Grey Seals, Orcas and occasionally Belugas.
Hornøya is open to the public but, due to its status as a nature reserve, visitors must stay within the designated areas during the breeding season and it is forbidden to pick plants or disturb the wildlife of the island.
Date: 2nd July 2019
Location: view from Hornøya looking towards Vardø, Barents Sea, Troms og Finnmark, Norway
Vardø Lighthouse is situated at the highest point of the island, at an elevation of 213 feet above sea level, and it protects the shipping lanes around the town of Vardø.
Daily boat trips run to Hornøya between 1st March and 1st September from Vardø harbour offering the chance to spend several hours on the island.
The seabird colony at Hornøya hosts approximately 100,000 seabirds of up to 11 breeding species. The cliffs are dominated by Common Guillemot, Razorbill, Puffin and Kittiwake. Around 500 pairs of Brünnich´s Guillemots, an auk distributed across the polar and sub-polar regions of the Northern Hemisphere, breed between the Common Guillemots. During the seabird breeding season, visitors to Hornøya have a good chance of seeing White-tailed Eagle and Gyrfalcon hunting along the cliffs.
In addition to the huge number of birds, Hornøya is also a good location to see Atlantic Grey Seals, Orcas and occasionally Belugas.
Hornøya is open to the public but, due to its status as a nature reserve, visitors must stay within the designated areas during the breeding season and it is forbidden to pick plants or disturb the wildlife of the island.
Date: 2nd July 2019
Location: view from Hornøya looking towards Vardø, Barents Sea, Troms og Finnmark, Norway
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Also in: North Norway
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