Rùm rest of the British Isles and Scotland, Rùm features a strongly maritime climate with cool summers and mild winters. There is a MetOffice weather station at Kinloch providing long term climate observations. The main range of hills on Rùm are the Cuillin, usually referred to as the "Rùm Cuillin", in order to distinguish them from the Cuillin of Skye. They are rocky peaks of gabbro, forming the Rum layered intrusion. Geologically, Rùm is the core of a deeply eroded volcano that was active in the Paleogene era some 60 million years ago, and which developed on a pre-existing structure of
Cuillin the rocky hills are largely bare, with exposed rock and scree. The entire area is designated as a Special Protection Area under the Natura 2000 programme due particularly for its importance to golden eagles. The site is of European importance for these birds, and holds one of the highest-density populations in Britain, having an unusually high breeding productivity. 911 pairs were estimated in 1992, this representing at least 2.8 % of the breeding population in Great Britain at that time. The Cuillin are protected as a national scenic area, defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to