Loch Ròg or Loch Roag is a large sea loch on the west coast of Lewis, Outer Hebrides. It is broadly divided into East Loch Roag and West Loch Roag with other branches which include Little Loch Roag. The loch is dominated by the only inhabited island Great Bernera and East Loch Roag is actually referred to as Loch Bernera on early maps, most notably Murdoch MacKenzie's original Admiralty Chart from 1776. The use of west and east to differentiate the sections of the loch appear from the original Ordnance Survey in the 19th century.
History
The burial of a Viking woman was discovered on in the area of Loch Roag and this ties in with a local tradition of a Viking princess. Even older human settlement has also been seen in the archaeology of the area. Dun Carlowaybroch was the site of the discovery of traces of the Beaker people. There is a recreated Iron Age house on Bernera at the Bosta Iron Age House.
Fish farming
Loch Ròg is an inmportant area for aquaculture and there are four fish-farming companies operating in the area, two are multi-nationals and the other two are locally owned. The farming of salmon in the loch caused controversy when a huge die off of wild Atlantic salmon in the Blackwater River, which flows into the sea loch. The wild salmon were in poor condition and had been subject to higher than normal levels of attack by sea lice. Investifators found levels of sea lice at a nearby salmon farm which were 13 times the industry standard.
Wildlife
Loch Ròg has a wide range of habitats and these are typical for sheltered sealoch systems. In the more exposed outer sites there are kelp forests dominated by Laminaria hyperborean while in the sheltered inner loch the kelp forest is dominated by Laminaria saccharina forest. Other habitats in the loch include cliff at the entrance where jewel anemones, plumose anemones and diverse turfs consisting ofbryozoa and ascidia. These cliffs end in areas of coarse sandy sediments at depths of. The silted, rocky slopes in the inner areas of the loch support encrustations of algae and ascidians, giving way to more mixed muddier sediments in shallower waters. Notable species recorded during underwater surveys of the loch include the holothurianHolothuria forskali, also known as the sea spinner, a species typical of more southerly British waters which occurs sporadically in western Scottish waters. Another interesting species recorded is the starfishStichastrella rosea which is more typical of the northern British coastal waters and is infrequently recorded from exposed western coastal waters. Other wildlife which may be seen around the loch include red deer, grey seal, European otter, white-tailed eagle and grey heron. The brackish lagoon complex along the shores of Loch Ròg is a Special Area of Conservation.
Islands
Loch Ròg contains a number of islands and these include Great Bernera and a number of uninhabited islands.
