Loch of Stenness
The Loch of Stenness is a large brackish loch on Mainland, Orkney[1] and is named for the parish of Stenness.
The loch is two miles northeast of the town of Stromness, and lies immediately to the south of the Loch of Harray, a freshwater loch from which it is separated by a narrow isthmus, the Ness of Brodgar, on which are found two of the Neolithic sites of Orkney's World Heritage Site: the Standing Stones of Stenness and Ring of Brodgar.[2]
In Old Norse the lake's name was Steinnesvatn ('Stenness Water').[3]
The lake
The Loch of Stenness is technically a sea loch as it is joined to the sea at high tide, which results in the salty water of the loch. It is the deepest loch on Mainland, and only slightly smaller in area and volume than the Loch of Harray.
The loch is 3¼ miles northeast of Stromness,[1] and is the largest brackish lagoon in the United Kingdom.[4]
The outflow of the loch is into the Bay of Ireland and the Hoy Sound at Brig o’ Waithe[5] where tidal currents influence the loch but cause little variation in its level. The loch is connected to the Loch of Harray at the Bridge of Brodgar[6] and both lochs together cover an area of 7 square miles.[6] The Loch of Stenness has a maximum depth of 17 feet and an average depth of 10 feet.
Natural history
The Loch of Stenness is important in terms of its biodiversity because of its brackish composition. It has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest as well as a Special Area of Conservation.[7] Its varying salt content supports a range of wildlife suited to marine, brackish and fresh water conditions[5] including burrowing worms, bivalves such as mussels and mya arenaria, the snail Hydrobia ulvae and various types green algae known as charophytes.[7] It provides a wintering ground for a wide variety of wildfowl, including pochard, tufted duck, scaup and goldeneye.
Archaeology
The Loch of Stenness is adjacent to the World Heritage sites of Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness. The Watch Stone, a solitary monolith 18 feet high, stands where the loch joins with the Loch of Harray, at Bridge of Brodgar.
The loch and its surrounding area underwent detailed geophysical and multibeam sonar surveys in 2011 and 2012 to investigate the drowned palaeo-landscape. The surveys indicated significant archaeological features in the loch including a circular structure possibly a henge.[8]
Outside links
- Location map: 59°0’0"N, 3°15’0"W
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Wilson, Rev. John The Gazetteer of Scotland (Edinburgh, 1882) Published by W. & A.K. Johnstone
- ↑ "World Heritage List - Heart of Neolithic Orkney". UNESCO. http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/514. Retrieved 2013-08-04.
- ↑ Pedersen, Roy (January 1992) Orkneyjar ok Katanes (map, Inverness, Nevis Print)
- ↑ "Loch of Stennes". JNCC. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Sites of Special Scientific Interest-SSSI - Orkney - Lochs of Stenness and Harray". http://www.orkney.gov.uk/Service-Directory/S/Sites-of-Special-Scientific-Interest-SSSI.htm#lochharray. Retrieved 2013-08-03.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Lochs of Harray and Stenness Site of Special Scientific Interest" Midas 1083. SNH
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Joint Nature Conservation Committee - Loch of Stenness". http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/protectedsites/sacselection/sac.asp?EUCode=UK0014749. Retrieved 2013-08-03.
- ↑ "Geophysical survey of the Loch of Stenness, Orkney". University of Aberdeen. http://www.abdn.ac.uk/staffpages/uploads/arc007/2012_Rising_Tide_Report_on_Loch_of_Stenness_Geophysics.pdf. Retrieved 2013-08-04.
- Murray, Sir John and Pullar, Laurence (1910) Bathymetrical Survey of the Fresh-Water Lochs of Scotland, 1897-1909. London; Challenger Office.
- This article incorporates text from - Wilson, Rev. John The Gazetteer of Scotland (Edinburgh, 1882) Published by W. & A.K. Johnstone