Lying just off the coast of West Scotland, the Hebrides archipelago is made up of more than 500 islands and islets.

Isolation from the mainland has made it the perfect breeding ground for millions of creatures, making it home to some of the largest gatherings, and greatest spectacles on the planet.

Over 35,000 Grey seals choose one small beach to give birth and do battle for breeding rights. On other isles, some of the world’s largest gatherings of sea birds engulf precipitous cliffs in a bid to raise their young.

On the Isle of Rum, Britain’s largest land mammal, the red deer, prepares for the annual rut, while Golden eagles patrol the skies anticipating their next meal.

For thousands of years, people have battled with the Hebridean elements – even the Vikings struggled to survive. The surrounding seas are some of the most treacherous on the planet and the roar from the world’s third largest whirlpool can be heard up to 16 kilometres away.

Stories of mermaids, giants and trolllike creatures litter the island’s shores, and evidence of recently abandoned communities adds more myth and legend to these mysterious lands.