Grassholm
| Grassholm Welsh: Ynys Gwales | |
 Gannets on Grassholm | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SM597093 |
| Area: | 22 acres |
| Data | |
Grassholm is a small, uninhabited island 8 miles off the south-western Pembrokeshire coast, lying west of Skomer. It is the westernmost point in Wales and is known for its huge colony of gannets. Grassholm has been owned since 1947 by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, and is one of its oldest reserves.
Grassholm National Nature Reserve is the third most important site for gannets in the world, after St Kilda in the Atlantic and Bass Rock in the Firth of Forth. It serves as a breeding site for 39,000 pairs of the birds, and supports around 10 percent of the world population.[1] The turbulent sea around Grassholm also provides good feeding ground for porpoises and bottlenose dolphins.
Boats sail to Grassholm from St. Justinians lifeboat station and Martin's Haven on the mainland.
The island has been identified with Gwales, an island featured in the Mabinogion. In the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, Gwales is the site of a fabulous castle where the severed head of Bran the Blessed is kept miraculously alive for eighty years while his companions feast in blissful forgetfulness.[2][3]
On 15 July 1945, the cargo ship SS Walter L M Russ ran aground on Grassholm and sank.[4] Nine crew were rescued by the Angle Lifeboat.[5]
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Grassholm) |
References
- ↑ Anon. "Grassholm". RSPB wepages. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/g/grassholm/index.aspx. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
- ↑ The Mabinogi of Branwen. From mabinogi.net. Retrieved May 8, 2009.
- ↑ The Mabinogion: Branwen the Daughter of Llyr, translated by Lady Charlotte Guest. Online at www.sacred-texts.com.
- ↑ Mitchell, W H, and Sawyer, L A (1995). The Empire Ships. London, New York, Hamburg, Hong Kong: Lloyd's of London Press Ltd. ISBN 1-85044-275-4.
- ↑ "History". Angle Lifeboat Station. http://anglelifeboat.org/history%20page.htm. Retrieved 30 May 2010.