Shake, rattle and roll as two earthquakes hit Melvich and other north coast communities
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Two earthquakes have hit a Sutherland village - with residents describing how their homes shook.
The first tremor measured 2.1 magnitude at Melvich, followed nearly three hours later by a smaller 0.8 magnitude quake.
The first at 1.14pm on Friday was at a depth of 7km, said the British Geological Survey.
It was felt by several residents in Melvich, Reay, Westfield and Dounreay.
Reports described "standing in kitchen when the whole house started to shake", "the windows and rattled" and "we thought it was a roll of thunder".
The largest known Scottish earthquake occurred near Loch Awe in 1880, with a magnitude of 5.2.
There are roughly 200-300 quakes in Britain every year, but the vast majority are so small that no one notices them. However between 20-30 are over 2.0 magnitude which can be felt over a wider area.
Earthquakes in Scotland are most often attributed to glacial rebound. Until about 10,500 years ago much of the north of the UK was covered by a thick layer of ice - which pushed the rocks down into the underlying mantle.
These rocks have been slowly rising back up ever since the ice melted, causing occasional earthquakes in the process.
The UK is also subject to tectonic stresses caused by the expansion of the Atlantic Ocean, which is slowly pushing the entire of Eurasia to the east, and from the northward motion of Africa, which is pushing into Europe from the south
The most damaging UK earthquake was in the Colchester area in 1884. Some 1200 buildings needed repairs, chimneys collapsed and walls were cracked.
