The film was shot almost entirely in the small Scottish towns of Gatehouse of Fleet, Newton Stewart, Kirkcudbright, and Creetown in Galloway as well as Plockton in Ross-shire. Some scenes were filmed in and around the Isle of Whithorn, where the owners of the castle, Elizabeth McAdam McLaughland and David Wheatley, plus several other local people, featured in various scenes. Culzean Castle in Ayrshire and its grounds and Floors Castle were also used for the shooting. Some of the opening flying shoots feature the Isle of Skye, including the pinnacles of The Storr and the Quiraing. The cave scenes were filmed inside Wookey Hole in Somerset. The amphibious aircraft that carries Sergeant Howie was a Thurston Teal, owned and flown in the aerial sequences by Christopher Murphy. The climax of the film was shot on the clifftops at Burrow Head. According to Britt Ekland, some animals perished in the Wicker Man, whereas Robin Hardy said in an interview that great care was taken to ensure that the animals were in no danger of being hurt during this scene and that they were not inside the Wicker Man when it was set on fire.