West Shetland Shelf MPA

Status: Nature Conservation Marine Protected Area (Nature Conservation MPA)

The West Shetland Shelf MPA lies to the north of Scotland in offshore waters 70–150 m deep.

Site

Lying to the north of Scotland in offshore waters, 70–150 m deep, the West Shetland Shelf MPA is designated for the wide variety of sand and gravel habitats present in the area. From fine-grained sands to coarse gravels, the different habitats provide conditions suitable for a diverse range of animals to thrive in and on the seabed.

More detailed site information can be found in the Summary section below.

Top

Site Timeline

The diagram below summarises the key milestones involved in the selection and designation of the West Shetland Shelf Nature Conservation MPA. More detail can be found within the Relevant Documentation section.

Top

Relevant Documentation

The documents referred to below and any other historical documents relating to West Shetland Shelf Nature Conservation MPA were produced during the selection and designation process and therefore may be out of date. This site information centre is the most up-to-date source of information for West Shetland Shelf Nature Conservation MPA, and will reflect any additional information gathered since these documents were produced. Information about the Nature Conservation MPA site selection process is available on JNCC's Nature Conservation MPA pages.

• Site Summary Document – Overview of the site and the protected features.  
• Data Confidence Assessment – Sets out our confidence in the presence and extent of the protected features.
• Assessment against MPA Selection Guidelines – Details the application of the Scottish MPA selection guidelines.
• Management Options Paper – Considers the management options for achieving the conservation objectives for each of the protected features in the MPA.
• Designation Order – Scottish ministerial order for the designation, including MPA boundary co-ordinates, and information on conservation objectives.
• Business Regulatory Impact Assessment – Assesses the environmental, social and economic costs and benefits of the designation.
• JNCC’s formal conservation advice for this site is accessible through the Conservation Advice section.

These resources are available on JNCC's Resource Hub.

Top

Summary

Last updated: October 2017

This site summary was adapted from the Nature Conservation MPA site summary and incorporates any information gathered since this document was produced. Please refer to this document for further details and information sources.

 

Site overview

Lying to the north of Scotland in offshore waters, the West Shetland Shelf Nature Conservation MPA has been designated for the protection of the wide variety of sand and gravel habitats (habitats of priority importance) present in the area, providing an important example of the northern extent of their range on the continental shelf in Scottish seas.

Although a relatively common habitat in Scottish seas, the range of different types of sand and gravel habitats present within the MPA support a particularly rich diversity of wildlife. On the surface anemones, cup sponges (Axinella infundibuloformis) and several types of crustaceans including hermit crabs and squat lobster (Munida rugosa) can be found living between small rocks, whilst urchins and starfish (such as Porania pulvillus and Asterias rubens) are typical fauna living on the surface of sandier sediments. Bryozoans and encrusting sponges are often found growing on the surface of cobbles and pebbles. Sea snails and bivalves, such as scallops, keel worms and sand mason worms (Lanice conchilega), are adapted to living buried in the sand to avoid predators.

The area enclosed within the MPA is also important for several species of fish, including the dragonet (Callionymus lyra), red gurnad (Aspitrigla cuculus), cod (Gadus morhua), plaice (Pleuronectes platessa), bass (Dicentrarchus labrax), and skate and rays (e.g. Raja naevus). 

Site location: Co-ordinates for this Nature Conservation MPA can be found in the designation order.

Site area: 4,083 km², a size similar to the Cairngorms National Park (4,508 km²).

Site depth range: 70–150 m.

Charting Progress 2 Biogeographic Region: Scottish Continental Shelf.

Site boundary description: The MPA boundary encompasses the distribution of a range of offshore subtidal sand and gravel habitats present within the area, providing an important example of the northern extent of their range on the continental shelf in Scotland’s seas.

Top

Monitoring and Evidence

Last updated: November 2023

For a full overview of the data used to support site identification along with information on confidence in feature presence and extent see the West Shetland Shelf Nature Conservation MPA Data Confidence Assessment.

Data for this Nature Conservation MPA have been primarily collected through JNCC-funded or collaborative surveys with other data obtained through other data sourcing. The data gathered provide direct evidence confirming the presence of the protected features within the site. Additional survey data will be added to JNCC's MPA mapper in due course.

 

Survey and data gathering

• Monitoring survey of West Shetland Shelf MPA and adjacent areas (2019) – This survey was a collaborative effort between JNCC and Marine Scotland Science and will contribute to the development of a monitoring time-series, against which the rate and direction of any change in the condition of the MPA features can be assessed.
• RV Scotia Rona-Windsock Survey (2011) – This survey was a collaborative effort between JNCC and Marine Scotland Science to improve our understanding of the species and habitats present within the MPA.
• Marine Scotland Science International Bottom Trawl Survey (2011) – This bottom trawl survey collected data on the fish populations in the MPA. Environmental information, including seabed samples and underwater imagery were collected to aid habitat classification and identify fauna present.
• RRS Charles Darwin Cruise (112C; 1998) – This cruise formed part of the Atlantic Margin Environmental Survey (AMES) programme, surveying the continental slope to the north and west of Shetland. Seabed samples, acoustic data and underwater imagery including photographic images and videos were collected.

 

Data analysis reports

• Seabed imagery analysis from the Firth of Forth Banks Complex, IBTS Q4 and deep-water sites survey (2014) – JNCC commissioned Seastar Survey Ltd to analyse the data collected from three Scottish offshore surveys undertaken by JNCC and Marine Scotland Science in 2011, to locate priority marine features in Scottish waters.
• Seafloor biotope assignment of grab samples from four surveys undertaken in 2011 across Scottish seas (2014) – JNCC commissioned Gardline Caledonia Ltd in 2012 to analyse benthic grab samples collected during four surveys (including the 2011 RV Scotia Rona-Windsock survey) to assign biotope classifications, identify priority marine features and further understanding of the distribution of MPA search features across Scotland’s seas.
• Seabed imagery analysis from three Scottish offshore surveys: MSS IBTSQ3, 1111s FRV Scotia Rona-Windsock survey and MSS Rockall survey (2014) – JNCC commissioned contractors to analyse the seabed imagery data collected from three Scottish offshore surveys undertaken by JNCC and Marine Scotland Science in 2011, to locate priority marine features in Scottish waters.
• Seafloor biotope analysis of the deep waters in the SEA4 region of Scottish seas (2012) – JNCC commissioned a contract to identify representative biotopes of the SEA4 region. The report drew on survey data collected by the 1998 AFEN survey and 2000 National Oceanography Centre led RRS Charles Darwin cruises.

 

Additional relevant literature

Supporting information on the presence and extent of the offshore subtidal sands and gravels was provided from EUSeaMap, a predictive seabed habitat mapping report for European waters. References for further supporting scientific literature consulted during the identification of this site can be found in the Data Confidence Assessment. Please be aware that although these sources contain information which is of interest in relation to this MPA, they do not necessarily represent the views of JNCC:

• Sotheran, I. & Crawford-Avis, O. 2014. Mapping habitats and biotopes to strengthen the information base of Marine Protected Areas in Scottish waters.

 

Knowledge gaps

As part of the UK Marine Monitoring and Assessment Strategy (UKMMAS), JNCC led the development of a UK Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Strategy, working with partners across the UK monitoring community. The Strategy spans UK territorial and offshore waters, focusing on biodiversity in the wider environment and within Marine Protected Areas.  Its aim is to implement efficient, integrated monitoring of marine biodiversity to provide the evidence needed for all the UK's policy drivers.

The Marine Directorate of Scottish Government, in partnership with JNCC and NatureScot, developed a Scottish Marine Protected Area (MPA) monitoring strategy. The Strategy spans Scottish territorial and offshore waters, focusing on biodiversity within Marine Protected Areas. The Strategy is supported by a series of annexes which provide more detail on monitoring methods, collaborative working, current monitoring and a two year forward look for MPA monitoring in Scottish waters.

The evidence collected during MPA monitoring surveys is used in combination with other available evidence to:

• Enable assessment of condition of the features within sites;
• Contribute to the assessment of the degree to which management measures are effective in achieving the conservation objectives for the protected features;
• Support the identification of priorities for future protection and/or management; and,
• Enable Government to fulfil its national and international assessment and reporting commitments in relation to MPAs and help identify where further action may be required.

More detail on offshore MPA monitoring can be found on the Offshore MPA monitoring webpage. A list of monitoring surveys and relevant reports can be found  on the MPA monitoring survey reports webpage.

If you are aware of any additional data or relevant scientific papers for this site not listed here, please contact us.

Top

Conservation Advice

Last updated: May 2026

Further information on the approach used to develop this advice is available on our ‘Conserving MPAs’ webpage along with a Glossary of Terms used in JNCC conservation advice to support the use of the conservation advice packages.

You must refer to the conservation advice package for a NCMPA if you are:

• intending to carry out any licensed activity in or near a NCMPA and need to find out how to operate within the law;
  
  
• an authority providing advice on specific proposals; 
  
  
• an authority responsible for putting management measures in place.

You may also find it useful to refer to the conservation advice package for a NCMPA if you are intending to carry out an activity in or near a NCMPA that does not require a license.

Note JNCC’s conservation advice has undergone development and a restructure in 2025 resulting in some changes it is useful to be aware of. Amongst other changes, most notably, there are now only four documents instead of five, having merged the content previously presented in two separate documents i.e. the Conservation Objectives and Conservation Advice Statements documents into one, which is now called the Conservation Objectives and Management Advice document. 

We will engage with stakeholders to identify any lessons which JNCC can learn from customers who have used the advice, with a view to continuing to ensure it is fit-for-purpose.

The following table provides an overview of the components of the conservation advice and provides hyperlinks to each. Combined, these components form JNCC’s formal conservation advice for this site and should be read in conjunction with each other. Until such times as this advice is updated, it remains JNCC’s formal conservation advice for the site.

Document	Overview
Background Information	Explains where to find the advice package, JNCC’s role in the provision of conservation advice, how the advice has been prepared, when to refer to it and how it can be used.
Conservation Objectives and Management Advice	Sets out the broad ecological aims (conservation objectives) for the site, JNCC’s view of protected feature condition, the conservation benefits that the site can provide if managed effectively, and the conservation measures which JNCC consider are required to support achievement of the conservation objectives stated for the site.
Supplementary Advice on the Conservation Objectives (SACO)	Provides more detailed and site-specific information and is essential reading to support the interpretation of the conservation objectives for the protected features of the site. Use this document to assess the impacts of your planned activity on the important attributes of the site.
Advice on Operations	Provides information in an excel workbook on the activities capable of impacting the site’s protected features and therefore achievement of the site’s conservation objectives. This is a starting point for determining potential management requirements. It does not take into account the intensity, frequency or cumulative impacts from activities taking place. It simply supports an understanding of the possible adverse impacts that an activity can have on a MPA’s features. Guidance is imbedded to support an understanding and use of the information provided in the workbook. Use the Advice on Operations to determine those pressures an activity can cause that could harm the qualifying/protected features of the site.

These resources are available on JNCC's Resource Hub.

Top

Image Gallery

Top