Rùm

Rùm(Scottish Gaelic pronunciation:[rˠuːm]), aScottish Gaelicname oftenanglicisedtoRum(/rʌm/rum), is one of theSmall Islesof theInner Hebrides, off the west coast ofScotland, in the district ofLochaber. For much of the 20th century the name becameRhum, a spelling invented by the former owner,Sir George Bullough, because he did not relish the idea of having the title "LairdofRum".
It is the largest of theSmall Isles, and the 15th largest Scottish island, and is inhabited by 40 people, all of whom live in the hamlet ofKinlochon the east coast. The island has been inhabited since the 8th millennium BC and provides some of the earliest known evidence of human occupation in Scotland. The earlyCelticandNorsesettlers left only a few written accounts and artefacts. From the 12th to 13th centuries on, the island was held by variousclansincluding theMacLeansofColl. The population grew to over 400 by the late 18th century but wasclearedof its indigenous population between 1826 and 1828. The island then became a sporting estate, the exoticKinloch Castlebeing constructed by the Bulloughs in 1900. Rùm was purchased by theNature Conservancy Councilin 1957.
Rùm is mainly igneous in origin, and its mountains have been eroded byPleistoceneglaciation. It is now an important study site for research inecology, especially ofred deer, and is the site of a successful reintroduction programme for thewhite-tailed sea eagle. Its economy is entirely dependent onNatureScot, a public body that now manages the island, and there have been calls for a greater diversity of housing provision. ACaledonian MacBrayneferry links the island with the mainland town ofMallaig.
Haswell-Smith (2004) suggests thatRumis "probably" pre-Celtic, but may beOld Norserõm-øyfor "wide island" orGaelicì-dhruim(pronounced[iˈɣɾɯim]) meaning "isle of the ridge". Ross (2007) notes that there is a written record ofRuimfrom 677 and suggests "spacious island" from the Gaelicrùm. Mac an Tàilleir (2003) is unequivocal that Rùm is "a pre-Gaelic name and unclear". In light of this,Richard Coateshas suggested that it may be worth looking for aProto-Semiticsource for the name.This is because theBritish Isleswere likely repopulated from theIberian Peninsulafollowing the lastIce Age. He proposes a name based on the Proto-Semitic root*rwm, a 'height-word' as seen inRamat GaninIsraelandRamallah,Palestine.Rum would therefore mean something like ‘(island of) height' or 'high island'.
The origins are therefore speculative, but it is known for certain that George Bullough changed the spelling toRhumto avoid the association with the alcoholic drink rum. However, the "Rhum" spelling is used on a Kilmory gravestone dated 1843.In 1991 theNature Conservancy Council of Scotland(the forerunner to NatureScot) reverted to the use ofRumwithout theh.
In the 13th century there may be references to the island asRaun-eyjaandRaun-eyjumandDean Munrowriting in 1549 calls itRonin.Seafaring Hebrideans had numerous taboos concerning spoken references to islands. In the case of Rùm, use of the usual name was forbidden, the island being referred to asRìoghachd na Forraiste Fiadhaich—"the kingdom of the wild forest".
The island was cleared of its indigenous population prior to being mapped by theOrdnance Survey, so it is possible that many place names are speculative. Nonetheless, the significant number of Norse-derived names that exist eight centuries afterVikingpolitical control ended indicate the importance of their presence on the island. Of the nine hamlets that were mapped in 1801, seven of the names are of Norse origin.
Rùm is the largest of the Small Isles, with an area of 10,463 hectares (25,850 acres).
Kinloch is at the head of Loch Scresort, the main anchorage. Kilmory Bay lies to the north. It has a fine beach and the remains of a village, and has for some years served as the base for research into red deer (see below). The area is occasionally closed to visitors during the period of the deerrutin the autumn. The western point is the A' Bhrìdeanach peninsula, and to the southwest lie Wreck Bay, the cliffs of Sgorr Réidh and Harris Bay. The last is the site of the Bullough'smausoleum. The family decided the first version was inadequate and dynamited it. The second is in the incongruous style of a Greek temple. Papadil (Old Norse: "valley of the hermit") near the southern extremity has the ruins of a lodge built and then abandoned by the Bulloughs.
An 1801 map produced by George Langlands identified nine villages: Kilmory to the north at the head of Glen Kilmory, Samhnan Insir just to the north between Kilmory and Rubha Samhnan Insir, Camas Pliasgiag in the northeast, "Kinlochscresort", (the modern Kinloch), Cove (Laimhrige at Bàgh na h-Uamha in the east), Dibidil in the southeast, Papadil in the south, Harris in the southwest and Guirdil at the head of Glen Shellesder in the northwest.
The island's relief is spectacular, a 19th-century commentator remarking that "the interior is one heap of rude mountains, scarcely possessing an acre of level land".This combination of geology and topography make for less than ideal agricultural conditions, and it is doubtful that more than one tenth of the island has ever been cultivated. In the 18th century average land rental values on Rùm were a third those of neighbouringEigg, and only a fifth ofCanna's.
Mean rainfall is high at 1,800 mm (71 in) at the coast and 3,000 mm (120 in) in the hills. Spring months are usually the driest and winter the wettest, but any month may receive the highest level of precipitation during the year.
The main range of hills on Rùm are the Cuillin, usually referred to as the "Rùm Cuillin", in order to distinguish them from theCuillinofSkye. They are rocky peaks ofgabbro, forming theRum layered intrusion.Geologically, Rùm is the core of a deeply erodedvolcanothat was active in thePaleogeneperiod some 60 million years ago,and which developed on a pre-existing structure ofTorridoniansandstoneandshalesresting onLewisian gneiss.Two of the Cuillin are classified asCorbetts:AskivalandAinshval, (Old Norsefor "mountain of the ash trees" and "hill of the strongholds" respectively) and Rùm is the smallestScottish islandto have a summit above 762 metres (2,500 ft). Other hills includeHallival,Trollaval('mountain of the trolls'),Barkeval, andSgurr nan Gillean(Gaelic: "peak of the young men") in the Cuillin and Ard Nev,Orval, Sròn an t-Saighdeir and Bloodstone Hill in the west.It is likely that only the higher peaks remained above the Pleistocene ice sheets asnunataks.
Hallival and Askival are formed from an extraordinary series oflayeredigneousrocks created asolivineandfeldsparcrystals accumulated at the base of amagmachamber.The chamber eventually collapsed, forming acaldera.There are swarms of near-verticaldykesof basalt on the northwest coast between Kilmory and Guirdil, created by basaltic magma forcing its way into fissures in the pre-existing rock.The western hills, although less elevated than the Cuillin, exhibit a superb collection ofperiglaciallandforms including boulder sheets and lobes, turf-banked terraces, ploughing boulders and patterned ground. On Orval and Ard Nev the weathered basalt andgranophyrehas been sorted by frost heaving into circles 50 centimetres in diameter and weathering on Barkeval has produced unusual rock sculptures. On Sròn an t-Saighdeir there are large sortedgraniteboulder circles 2–3 metres across on the flat summit and sorted stripes on the slopes. Lava flowing away from the volcanic centre formed Bloodstone Hill, gas bubbles leaving holes in the structure that were then filled with greenagateflecked with red. There are some outcrops of the pre-volcanic Lewisian gneiss near Dibidil in the southeast corner of the island, and more extensive deposits of sandstone in the north and east.
A site near Kinloch known as Farm Fields provides some of the earliest known evidence of human occupation in Scotland. Carbonizedhazelnutshells found there have been dated to theMesolithicperiod at 7700-7500 BC.; at this time the landscape was dominated byalder,hazelandwillowscrub.A beach site above Loch Scresort has been dated to between 6500 and 5500 BC. The presence of thishunter-gatherercommunity may have been to take advantage of the local supplies ofbloodstone, a workable material for the making of tools and weapons. There is a shell-midden at Papadil in the south and evidence of tidal fish traps at both Kinloch and Kilmory.
Examination ofpeatcores andpollenrecords indicates that soil erosion (suggesting clearance of woodland for agricultural purposes) was taking place in 3470 BC (the earlyNeolithicera); much later, from 2460 BC, evidence of arable cultivation exists.As the climate became damper,peatexpanded its coverage at the expense of woodland, and post-glacial sea level changes left raised beaches around the coastline 18–45 metres above the present sea-level, especially between Harris and A'Bhrideanach;Bronze Ageartefacts, such as barbed-and-tanged arrowheads typical of theBeaker People, have been found in themachairwhich replaced it.
There are prehistoric fort sites at promontories near Kilmory, Papadil and Glen Shellesder of uncertain date.These primarily consist of a wall dividing the promontory from the rest of the island, but at Kilmory, there is also a rampart with a hollow containing the traces of an interior structure. At Shellesder, the promontory contains the remains of three round stone-walled huts, one of which integrates with the dividing wall. A small number of cairns, again of uncertain date, are also located along the coast.
In the sixth and seventh centuries, Irish missionary activity led byColumbaestablished a Christian presence in the region. Beccan of Rùm (previously a monk atIona) may have lived on the island (at Papadil), for four decades from 632, his death being recorded in theAnnals of Ulsterin 677. He is known to have been conservative on doctrinal matters and surviving examples of his poetry suggest a passionate personality.He wrote of Columba:
Simple stone pillars, over1.4 metres (4+1⁄2feet) tall, have been found at Kilmory and Bàgh na h-Uamha ("bay of the cave"), and may date from this period.The latter pillar in particular is inscribed with a slim cross having strong similarities to a motif in the late 6th centuryCathach of St. Columba. The other pillar – at Kilmory – is slimmer (being 230 mm or 9 in wide, rather than 410 mm or 1 ft 4 in), but is inscribed with a more elaborate design, resembling aglobus crucigersitting in achalice; on the back is a simpleLatin Cross.
From 833,Norsesettlers established theKingdom of the Islesthroughout the Hebrides. Despite beinga dependency of the Norwegian king, practical authority rested with theMacSorley, following a revolt by their ancestor,Somerled; the strip fromUistto theRough Bounds, which contained the Small Isles, was ruled by theMacRorybranch of the MacSorley.The only archaeological evidence of a Norse presence on Rùm, to date, is a piece of carvednarwhalivory, dating from the MacRory era, which served as a playing token / draughtsman.
In 1266, theTreaty of Perthtransferred the Kingdom of the Isles tothe Scottish king. At the turn of the century,William Ihad created the position ofSheriff of Inverness, to be responsible for the Scottish highlands, which theoretically now extended to Garmoran;nevertheless, the treaty expressly preserved the power of local rulers, turning the MacRory lands into theLordship ofGarmoran, a quasi-independent crown dependency, rather than an intrinsic part of Scotland.
After nearly a century, the sole MacRory heir wasAmy of Garmoran, who marriedJohn of Islay,leader of theMacDonalds, the most powerful branch of the MacSorley. A decade later, John put Amy, a faithful wife, aside to marry Princess Margaret, thus depriving his eldest son,Ranald, of the ability to inherit the lordship and those MacDonald lands. As compensation, John granted the Lordship of the Uists to Ranald's younger brother Godfrey, and made Ranald Lord of the remainder of Garmoran, including Rùm.
In 1380, shortly after it was acquired by Ranald,John of Fordunindicates that Rùm was "a wooded and hilly island" "with excellent sport, but few inhabitants".It is possible that during the earlymedievalperiod the island was used as a hunting reserve by the nobility;in Gaelic it was referred to asRìoghachd na Forraiste Fiadhaich— "the kingdom of the wild forest".
However, on Ranald's death, Godfrey seized Garmoran, leading to an enormous amount of violence between him and Ranald's heirs (Clan Ranald). In 1427, frustrated with the level of violence, KingJames Idemanded that highland leaders should attend a meeting atInverness. On arrival, many of the leaders were seized and imprisoned; some were killed. After a quick show trial of Godfrey's heir, and in view of Clan Ranald being no less responsible for the violence, King James killed Alexander MacGorrie and declared the Lordship of Garmoran forfeit.
Following the forfeiture, most of Garmoran remained with the Scottish crown until 1469, whenJames IIIgrantedLairdshipof it toJohn of Ross, the new MacDonald leader, who passed it to his own half-brother,Hugh of Sleat. Clan Ranald objected to the transfer to Hugh, and appear to have retained some level of physical possession, regardless of whether they any legal authority to do so. The status of Rùm during this period is unclear, as surviving records do not mention it as part of Hugh's possessions.
Alexander, the previous MacDonald leader, had made land grants to the eldest and youngest sons ofLachlan MacLean, grandson of Alexander's aunt.John Garbh(the youngest son) now obtained Rùm (possibly, Alexander hadquitclaimedit to him); like Hugh's gains, Clan Ranald objected to this transfer.Traditional accounts claim that John Garbh purchased a quitclaim of Clan Ranald rights from their leader, Allan, by giving them agalley; though the galleylookedin good quality, the interior (so the legend says) was rotten, hence explaining Clan Ranald's refusal to accept John Garbh's ownership of Rùm.John Garbh subsequently seized Allan, and held him prisoner onCollfor 9 months;presumably Allan was only released once he had agreed to acknowledge the exchange.
In 1493, John Garbh's heirs (the MacLeans of Coll) became directvassalsof the king, as a result of John MacDonald's realm becoming forfeit. This brought them into conflict with the heirs of John Garbh's elder brother (the MacLeans ofDuart), who believed themselves to be the leaders of all MacLeans. In 1549Donald Munro, conducting a survey, noted that although the island "pertained" to Coll it "obeys instantlie" to Duart,a situation that continued for some time.
Munro also reported that, at the time, Rùm was highly forested, with an abundance of deer.Munro goes on to argue that the best way of slaying the deer would be when they are moving uphill (when gravity is against them), their principal home being in the heights.Contemporary with Munro, substantial stone walls were built in the glens to funnel deer into pens.
WhenLachlan Morbecame leader of the MacLeans of Duart, he pursued the feud with vigour. In 1588, he had the fortune for some remains of theSpanish Armadato arrive in his lands (Mull); Lachlan offered them refuge in return for a supply of 100 soldiers. So it was that in 1588 Lachlan Mor attacked the Small Isles with the aid of Spaniards, and slaughtered its population, sparing neither women nor children. Rùm's character as a hunting reserve, and the low numbers of its former population, meant that there was little long-term impact, once Rùm was repopulated. A contemporary, Skene, noted that
The kingimprisoned Lachlan (in Edinburgh) for his actions, but he escaped, and faced no further punishment. A later report for the king indicated that the island was repopulated by members of Clan Ranald
The MacLeans of Rùm and of Duart were mild supporters of theScottish reformation, remainingEpiscopalian, rather than becomingPresbyterian, and consequently theRoman Catholicchurch thought them susceptible tore-conversion. In 1622, the Irish church sent Cornelius Ward, aFranciscanfriar, to bring Roman Catholicism back into the MacLean lands. Arriving on Rùm in 1625, Cornelius reported that it only had three villages;a few decades earlier the much smaller nearby island ofMuckwas recorded as having twice as many able men, suggesting that Rùm's population had been deliberately constrained.
Cornelius had no luck with the MacLean leadership, who remained Episcopalian, but the (small) population of Rùm does appear to have become Roman Catholic again. In the rest of the nation,Covenantersgradually gained political control. Coll (along with the lands of the MacLeans of Duart) was under the shrieval authority of thesheriff of Argyll; under pressure fromthe Earl of Argyll, one of the most powerful Covenanter leaders, shrieval authority over Rùm was transferred from Inverness to the Argyll sheriff, which was under the control ofthe Earl's family.
In later generations, the lairds themselves becamePresbyterian, preventing the island from becoming involved in theJacobite risings, but it did ultimately bring a minor dispute to the island. In 1726, Presbyterianism was established in Rùm, quickly taking hold of the island's population (there were only around 150 people living on Rùm at the time). Nevertheless, Rùm had no permanent Protestant minister, and when one visited, he was obliged to conduct sermons in the open air, there being no church building.
Half a century later, when visiting the wider region,Dr. Johnsonwas told that the lairdhad hit one of the tenants across the back with a gold-tipped cane, as punishment for going to Roman Catholicmass, threatening the same treatment for any others who did so. The Roman Catholic population ofEigg, an adjacent island, facetiously called Rùm's ProtestantismTheReligion of the Yellow Stick.
The introduction of thepotatoas a food crop, in the 18th century, led to a rapid expansion of demand for arable land, which the populace also planted withbarley. The increased health andfecunditythis brought, and the lack of further wars, led to a population expansion;by 1801 there were nine hamlets on the island.
In turn, the increased demand for work led to new sources of income. Black cattle were raised for export to the mainland, and (more unusually) goats were kept by the inhabitants, the hair being sent toGlasgowand made into wigs for export to America.The economy was in no small part dependent on the bounty of the sea; Edward Clarke, visiting in 1797 dined on:
However, local agriculture was comparatively primitive,and the lack of lime restricted the ability to tanleather, or construct sophisticated buildings;the island was no more valuable than the much much smaller island of Muck.Furthermore, the new demands on the land had reduced the great forest island into an essentially treeless landscape;by the end of the century, this had caused the extinction of the native red deer (Cervus elaphus).
The increase in the price ofkelp, as a result of theNapoleonic Wars, was the only thing keeping Rùm's economy afloat.Inevitably, when the Napoleonic Wars ended, the kelp price collapsed, causing severe financial hardship. The laird himself was in additional difficulties as a result of having purchased the Isle of Muck during the peak of demand for kelp. He decided to evict the tenants, and lease the whole island to a relative, Dr Lachlan Maclean.
In keeping with theHighland Clearancesthat had swept Scotland since the 1750s, in 1825 the inhabitants of Rùm (then numbering some 450 people) were given a year's notice to quit. The inhabitants of Rùm had simply been tenant farmers, paying rent to the laird; they owned neither the land they worked, nor the houses in which they lived. On 11 July 1826, about 300 of the inhabitants boarded two overcrowded shipsbound forCape BretoninNova Scotia. The laird, and Dr Lachlan, paid for their journey. The remaining population followed in 1827.Similar evictions happened all over thegaelic-speaking parts of Scotland, and collectively became known as theHighland Clearances.Harriswas the largest settlement in the 18th century, which was cleared. It had 37 buildings.
In 1827, when giving evidence to a government select committee on emigration, an agent of the laird was asked "And were the people willing to go?"; "Some of them", came the reply, "Others were not very willing, they did not like to leave the land of their ancestors".Years later an eyewitness, a local shepherd, was more florid in his description of the events: "The people of the island were carried off in one mass, for ever, from the sea-girt spot where they were born and bred... The wild outcries of the men and heart-breaking wails of the women and children filled all the air between the mountainous shore of the bay".
Lachlan turned Rùm into a sheep farm, with its population replaced by some 8,000 blackface sheep. So total had been the clearance that he was forced to import families to the island to act asshepherds. However, the prosperity elsewhere in the UK led to traditional staples like mutton and wool being of less interest to consumers, and their price fell. In 1839 the price of mutton fell dramatically, bankrupting Dr Lachlan, and forcing him to leave. Ironically, in the words of one of the emigrees, Dr Lachlan, "the Curse and Scourge of the Highland Crofters" was now "much worse off than the comfortable people he turned out of Rùm 13 years previously".
In 1844 the visiting geologist,Hugh Miller, wrote:
In 1845, the MacLean laird sold the island tothe Marquess of Salisbury, who converted Rùm into an estate for country sports. The Marquis first built a pier at Kinloch, and adjacent limekiln, to help with this process, re-introducing deer, bothRedandFallow. He then passed the land to his son,Viscount Cranbourne, who was more interested in fishing.
The main rivers of Rùm were essentially just trickling streams, so Cranbourne came up with a plan to increase the power of the Kinloch River, by diverting the other two. In 1849, he built a dam at the end of Loch Sgathaig, allowing him to diverting the overflow into the Kilmory River (northwards), rather than the Abhainn Rhangail (southwards). In 1852, he attempted to dam the Kilmory River, half a mile north of Loch Sgathaig, the plan being to send the overflow into the Kinloch River via a short canal; unfortunatelySalisbury's Damcollapsed shortly after being built.
In 1870, the island was sold to Farquhar Campbell, fromAros, a man keen on Rùm's potential for shooting. In 1888, he decided to sell it; the sale prospectus described Rùm as "the most picturesque of the islands which lie off the west coast of Scotland" and "as a sporting estate it has at present few equals". According to the sale documents, the population was between 60 and 70, all either shepherds or estate workers and their families. There were no crofts on the island.
In 1888 the island was sold to John Bullough, a cotton machinery manufacturer (and self-made millionaire) fromAccringtonin Lancashire, who continued to use the island for recreational purposes. In the following year, counties were formally created in Scotland, on shrieval boundaries, bya dedicated Local Government Act; Rùm therefore became part of the newcounty of Argyll. When Bullough died in 1891 he was buried on Rùm, in a rock-cut mausoleum, under an octagonal stone tower. His heirs, however, felt that this was beneath his dignity, and demolished it, moving his sarcophagus into an elaborate mausoleum modelled as a Greek temple, built in 1892and designed byWilliam James Morley.Argyll, similarly, was not thought fitting for Rùm, and that same yearwas moved by boundary review to thecounty of Inverness, whereEiggalready sat.
John was succeeded as owner of Rùm by his son,George(later Sir George). George builtKinloch Castlein 1900 using sandstone quarried atAnnan. The interior boasted anorchestrionthat could simulate the sounds of brass, drum and woodwind, an air-conditionedbilliardsroom, and ajacuzzi. A dam was built on Coire Dubh burn forhydroelectricpurposes; the house was the first private home in Scotland, outside ofGlasgow, to have an electricity supply.
At this time there were about 100 people employed on the estate. Fourteen under-gardeners, who were paid extra to wearkilts, worked on the extensive grounds that included a nine-hole golf course, tennis andsquashcourts, heated turtle and alligator ponds and anaviaryincluding birds of paradise and humming birds. Soil for the grounds was imported fromAyrshireand figs, peaches, grapes and nectarines were grown ingreenhouses.
This opulence could not be sustained indefinitely, and theWall Street crashbadly damaged the family finances, decreasing their interest in, and visits to, Rùm. Sir George died in France, in July 1939, shortly before the outbreak of World War II, and was interred in the family mausoleum on Rùm. His widow continued to visit Rùm as late as 1954. When in 1957 Lady Bullough sold the whole island, including the Castle and its contents, to theNature Conservancy Council, on the understanding that it would be used as anational nature reserve,the mausoleum was the only part of Rùm not included in the sale. Lady Bullough died in London, in 1967, at the age of 98; she was buried next to her husband in the Rùm mausoleum.
Rùm is an important study site for research in ecology and numerous academic papers have been produced based on work undertaken on the island. In addition to its status as a National Nature Reserve, Rùm was designated aBiosphere Reservefrom 1976 to 2002,aSite of Special Scientific Interestin 1987, and has seventeen sites scheduled as nationally important ancient monuments.
The red deer population has been the subject of research for many years, recently under the leadership ofTim Clutton-Brockof theUniversity of Cambridge.These efforts are based at the remote bay of Kilmory in the north of the island. It has been important in the development ofsociobiologyandbehavioural ecology, particularly in relation to the understanding ofaggressionthroughgame theory. In November 2019 it was revealed that a 45-year study indicated that climate change had affected the gene pool of the red deer population on Rùm. Warmer temperatures resulted in deer giving birth on average three days earlier for each decade of the study. The gene which selects for earlier birth has increased in the population because hinds with the gene have more calves over their lifetime.
The island has small herds ofponies, feral goats (Capra hircus) andHighland cattle. The pony herd, which now numbers about a dozen animals, was first recorded on the island in 1772, and in 1775 they were described as being "very small, but a breed of eminent beauty".They are small in stature, averaging only 13handsin height and all have a dark stripe down their backs and zebra stripes on their forelegs. These features have led to speculation that they may be related to primitivenorthern Europeanbreeds, although it is more likely that they originate from the westernMediterranean. It is sometimes claimed that they are descended from animals that travelled with theSpanish Armada, although it is probable that they arrived by more conventional means. The goat stocks were improved forstalkingin the early 20th century and acquired a reputation for the size of their horns and the thickness of their fleeces. The flock of about 200 spends most of its time on the western sea cliffs. The native cattle were re-introduced in 1970, having been absent since the 19th century clearances. The herd of 30 grazes in the Harris area from September to June, and further north in Glen Shellesder in the summer months.
Rùm is also noted for its bird life. The population of 70,000Manx shearwatersis one of the largest breeding colonies in the world. These migrating birds spend their winters in the South Atlantic off Brazil, and return to Rùm every summer to breed in burrows high in the Cuillin Hills.White-tailed sea eagleswere exterminated on the island by 1912 and later became extinct in Scotland. A programme of reintroduction began in 1975, and within ten years 82 young sea eagles from Norway had been released. There is now a successful breeding population in the wild.
There arebrown trout,European eelandthree-spined sticklebackin the streams, andsalmonoccasionally run in the Kinloch River.The onlyamphibianfound on Rùm is thepalmate newtand the onlyreptilenative to Rùm is thecommon lizard.Invertebratesare diverse and have been studied there since 1884, numerous species ofdamselfly,dragonfly,beetle,butterflies,mothsetc. having been recorded. Several rare upland species are found on the ultrabasic slopes of Barkeval, Hallival and Askival including the ground beetlesLeistus montanusandAmara quenseli. Themidge(Culicoides impunctatus), a biting gnat, occurs in "unbelievable numbers".
In October 2006 the popularAutumnwatchseries onBBCtelevision showed coverage of the deerrutat Kilmory Bay.
A 1.5-hectare (3.7-acre) patch ofbrown earthsoil at the abandoned settlement of Papadil is home to a thriving population ofearthworms, which are rare in the elsewhere poor soil of the island.Some individuals ofLumbricus terrestrishave reached tremendous sizes, with the largest weighing 12.7 grams. This is speculated to be due to the good quality soil, and absence of predators.
A tree nursery was established at Kinloch in 1960 in order to support a substantial programme of re-introducing twenty native species includingsilver birch,hawthorn,rowanandholly.The forested area, which consists of over a million re-introduced native trees and shrubs, is essentially confined to the vicinity of Kinloch and the slopes near this site surrounding Loch Scresort and on nearby Meall á Ghoirtein.The island's flora came to widespread attention with the 1999 publication of the bookA Rum AffairbyKarl Sabbagh, a British writer and television producer. The book told of a long-running scientific controversy over the alleged discovery of certain plants on Rùm by botanistJohn William Heslop-Harrison—discoveries that are now considered to be fraudulent. Heslop Harrison is widely believed to have placed many of these plants on the island himself to provide evidence for his theory about the geological development of theHebridean islands.Nonetheless, the native flora offers much of interest. There are rarearctic sandwortandalpine pennycress, endemic varieties of theheath spotted-orchidandeyebright, as well as more common species such assundew,butterwort,blue heath milkwortandroseroot.A total of 590 higher plant and fern taxa have been recorded.
Rum has a number of national and international conservation designations for its spectacular natural and built heritage, including:
The entire island is owned and managed as a single estate by NatureScot. There are a variety of small businesses on the island including accommodation providers as well as artists and crafters. Most of the residents live in the hamlet of Kinloch, in the east of the island, which has no church, restaurant or pub. It has a village hall, general shop and a post office,which is run as a private business. A small church has been transformed into a school, which counts 5 pupils as of 2022. A cafe opens in summer. Rùm has broadband internet access, installed by a salmon farming company.
In general the island has a transient population comprising employees of NatureScot and their families, researchers, and a teacher. Until recently NatureScot was opposed to the development of the island as a genuine community, but there has been a change in approach since the beginning of 2007. Di Alexander, development manager for the Highlands Small Communities Housing Trust has said: "It has been clear for many years that the small community on Rùm needs to increase and diversify its housing supply away from exclusivelySNH-tied housing. Even a couple of new rented houses could make such a difference to the community's wellbeing."
Surprisingly perhaps, on a 10,500-hectare (26,000-acre) estate with a population less than thirty, an issue has been lack of land for building. However, a spokesman for the agency has stated "Once we are clear what the trust's priorities are, we will release the land".In 2008 a "Rùm Task Group", chaired byLesley Riddoch, was created to generate proposals for advancing community development opportunities. It reported toMike RussellMSPtheMinister for Environmentin theScottish Government, and in June a plan was announced to establish a locally-run trust with the aim of reintroducingcroftingsettlements to the area around Kinloch village.In December it was announced that £250,000 of land and buildings were likely to be placed into community ownership, subject to a ballot of the electorate in January 2009.The transfer of 65 hectares of mixed land, three crofts, 10 domestic properties and eight non-domestic properties in and around Kinloch village to the Isle of Rum Community Trust took place in two phases in 2009 and 2010.
ACaledonian MacBrayneferry,MVLochnevis, links Rùm and the neighbouring Small Isles of Canna, Eigg and Muck, to the mainland port ofMallaigsome 17 miles (27 kilometres) and1⁄2hours sailing time away.The Lochnevis has alanding craft-style stern ramp allowing vehicles to be driven onto and off the vessel at a newslipwayconstructed in 2001. However, visitors are not normally permitted to bring vehicles to the Small Isles. During the summer months the islands are also served by Arisaig Marine's ferryMV Sheerwaterfrom Arisaig, 10 mi (16 km) south of Mallaig.
The best anchorage is Loch Scresort, with other bays offering only temporary respites from poor weather.Robert Buchananwriting in the 19th century described it as:
In the summer of 2002 areality TVprogramme titledEscape from Experiment Islandwas filmed on the island. This short-lived show (six episodes) was produced by the BBC in conjunction with theDiscovery Channel. The show was to piggyback on the success ofJunkyard Warsby having the teams build vehicles to escape from the island.
In August 2020 it was announced that four new homes would be built in the village of Kinloch in an effort to attract more people to live on the island.
Rùm is one of the most sparsely populated of all Scottish islands. There is no indigenous population; the residents are a mixture of employees ofNatureScotand their families, together with a number of researchers and a school teacher.
In recent years, Rùm's inhabitants have been seeking to attract more people to the island in order to boost their population.Their appeal has been successful, with several hundred applications being sent in response to their campaign. The island has witnessed a population explosion relative to its size. In August 2020, the population was estimated to be around 32.Less than a year and a half later, the number of inhabitants was estimated to be around 40.
As with the rest of theBritish Isles, Rùm features a stronglymaritime climatewith cool summers and mild winters.
There is a MetOffice weather station at Kinloch providing long term climate observations.
57°0′N6°21′W﻿ / ﻿57.000°N 6.350°W﻿ /57.000; -6.350