Seil
| Scottish Gaelic name | Saoil |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| OS grid reference | NM742172 |
| Physical geography | |
| Island group | Slate Islands |
| Area | 1,329 hectares (5.13 sq mi) |
| Area rank | 42 [1] |
| Highest elevation | Meall Chaise 146 metres (479 ft) |
| Administration | |
| Council area | Argyll and Bute |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 560 |
| Population rank | 21 [1] |
| Largest settlement | Ellenabeich |
 | |
| References | [2][3][4][5] |
One of the Slate Islands, Seil (Scottish Gaelic: Saoil) is small island on the east side of the Firth of Lorn, 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Oban, in Scotland.
Seil has been linked to the Scottish mainland since 1792 when the Clachan Bridge was built by engineer Robert Mylne. Also known as the Bridge Over the Atlantic, the bridge is still used today and in early summer is covered in fairy foxgloves (Erinus alpinus).
The main settlement on Seil is former slate-mining village Ellenabeich, where parts of Ring of Bright Water were filmed. The Ellenabeich Heritage Centre which opened in 2000, is run by the Scottish Slate Islands Trust. Located in a former slate quarry-worker's cottage, the centre has displays on life in the 19th Century, slate quarrying and the local flora, fauna and geology.[6] Another village is Balvicar. Ferries sail from Ellenabeich to Easdale, and from Cuan on the island to Luing.
Wildlife concerns
According to wildlife experts the entire badger population of the island may have been deliberately exterminated in 2007. Forty of the animals, whose setts were believed to be long established, may have been gassed to death, according to the police. The police also expressed concerns that two Golden Eagles and one White-tailed Sea Eagle have been found poisoned near Seil in recent years, involving use of the banned substance Carbofuran.[7]
Footnotes
- ^ a b Area and population ranks: there are c. 300 islands over 20 ha in extent and 93 permanently inhabited islands were listed in the 2011 census.
- ^ 2001 UK Census per List of islands of Scotland
- ^ Haswell-Smith, Hamish (2004). The Scottish Islands. Edinburgh: Canongate. ISBN 978-1-84195-454-7.
- ^ Ordnance Survey
- ^ Iain Mac an Tailleir. "Placenames" (PDF). Pàrlamaid na h-Alba. Retrieved 2007-07-25.
- ^ "Ellenabeich Heritage Centre". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 2007-07-25.
- ^ " Police fear island's historic badger population has been exterminated" wildland-network.org.uk reporting Press and Journal article (25 April 2007). Aberdeen. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
Inhabited islands of the Hebrides | ||
|---|---|---|
| Inner Hebrides |  | |
| Outer Hebrides | ||
56°18′0″N 5°37′12″W / 56.30000°N 5.62000°W
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