Freedom of Information Request - Flapper skate nursery, Scapa Flow
Date: 23 January 2026
Our ref: SIR182916/A5662603
Information Request – Flapper skate nursery, Scapa Flow
Your Request
‘I request the following information:
1. Copies of any reports, survey results, datasets, or assessments held by NatureScot relating to flapper skate egg cases or nursery sites in Scapa Flow.
2. All correspondence (including emails, letters, meeting notes, and attachments) between NatureScot and Orkney Islands Council relating to flapper skate, skate nursery sites, Scapa Flow surveys, or associated protection measures.
3. All correspondence between NatureScot and salmon farming companies or aquaculture industry representatives that refers to flapper skate, skate nurseries, Scapa Flow, or marine spatial protection measures, including correspondence with (but not limited to):
• Mowi Scotland Ltd
• Scottish Sea Farms Ltd
• Cooke Aquaculture Scotland Ltd
• Grieg Seafood Hjaltland Ltd
• Bakkafrost Scotland Ltd
4. Any internal NatureScot briefings, advice notes, or assessments relating to:
• the conservation status of flapper skate in Orkney waters; and
• the interaction between flapper skate conservation and aquaculture activity or marine planning decisions.
Date range: 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025.’
Clarified Request
‘I can confirm that I am interested only in correspondence relating to flapper skate conservation in the Orkney area, including Scapa Flow.
This should include correspondence between NatureScot and salmon farming companies or aquaculture industry representatives where flapper skate, skate nurseries, or conservation/protection measures for flapper skate in Orkney waters are discussed.
I am not seeking correspondence unrelated to flapper skate conservation.’
Our Response
Following a detailed search of the information we hold we have identified several documents relevant to your request. These are attached separately.
Please note, NatureScot met with Orkney Islands Council on 15th December 2025, but we do not hold any recorded information.
Flapper skate are a Priority Marine Feature (PMF) in Scotland so they are protected everywhere.
The following blog and paper on the discovery of the flapper skate egg nursery at Red Rocks and Longay may be of interest:
• ‘The story behind the discovery of world’s first flapper skate nursery’
We are withholding a draft document about flapper skates as it is still under development. We are withholding this under EIR exemption Regulation 10(4)(d) - Material in the course of completion, unfinished documents, and incomplete data (Environmental Information Regulations).
We have marked out (redacted) personal data in the documents provided. Releasing the personal data into the public domain in response to an access to information request would breach the Data Protection Act 2018. We are therefore withholding the information under EIRs Regulation 11(2) (Personal data).
How We Handled Your Request
We believe you have asked for environmental information as defined in the Environmental Information (Scotland Regulations 2004 (‘the EIRs’), so we are dealing with your request under those regulations. To be able to use the EIRs, we must apply an exemption under section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (‘FOISA’). The Scottish Information Commissioner’s guidance recommends that public authorities apply this exemption to environmental information and handle request under the EIRs.
If you would like to find out more about the access to information legislation, there is a guidance booklet available on the Scottish Information Commissioner’s website.
Review and Appeal
I hope this information meets your requirements, but if you are dissatisfied with how we have responded to your information request, please write to us within 40 working days explaining your concerns. You can contact us at Battleby, Redgorton, Perth, PH1 3EW or email us at [email protected]. We will carry out a review of our response and contact you with our findings within 20 working days.
If you are not satisfied following this, you can make an appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner within 6 months. The Scottish Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Scottish Information Commissioner
Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road
St Andrews
Fife
KY16 9DS
Telephone: 01334 464610
Yours sincerely
FOI Officer,
NatureScot
Document downloads
Due to file size the attached information, referenced above, is available on request by contacting the FOI team at [email protected]. Please reference the case number (starting with SIR).
