Panorama of a sunset over the Machair at Dalabrog on the west coast of South Uist. This beach near Dalabrog practically runs the full length of South Uist on the Western Isles on the south west of the Outer Hebrides off the western coast of Scotland. The unspoilt natural beauty of the land remains unchanged for generations.

Dalabrog machair - South Uist visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'Dalabrog machair' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from Western Isles.

Classic panorama of Machair on South Uist. Machair is a fragile and protected ecosystem and habitat for several special of wildlife, birds and plants. The white sandy beaches stretch out along the edge of the untamed Atlantic Ocean and only meters away are the homes and crofts of residents, living right on the 'edge of the world'.

Croft land is land owned by a landlord but worked by a tenant farmer. Residents here are often tenant farmers whose families have lived and worked on this land for countless generations. Much of the croft land here is cultivated as grazing for cattle and sheep. 'Stock' are raised here, young calves and lambs bred from herds of cows and sheep, tended into early adulthood by their shepherd crofters. When old enough, these calves and lambs are then sold on to larger scale farmers in central Scotland and England who continue to raise them for beef or dairy, or wool. Often a farmer will specialize in end-production, or in rearing young livestock.

Traditionally here, the majority of crofters who tend livestock rear young 'stock' for selling on to farmers. Given the quality and purity of this pristine pasture land, prices at market can fetch the highest value as the care given in raising fine livestock is evident to buyers. In raising their livestock, crofters can receive financial subsidies which help them afford to work to maintain and preserve this precious environment which enables them to raise high quality livestock.