Critically endangered wildcats now call the Cairngorms National Park home

13/10/2023 in Conservation

The first round of wildcat releases in Scotland has been completed by Saving Wildcats, led by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) in partnership with NatureScot, Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS), The Cairngorms National Park Authority, Nordens Ark and Consejería de Sostenibilidad, Medio Ambiente y Economía Azul de la Junta de Andalucía.

19 wildcats, which were released in small clusters in locations within the Cairngorms National Park and Cairngorms Connect landscape throughout the summer, have been tracked daily using GPS-radio collars.

By using tracking technology, researchers have been able to collect valuable data on what kind of areas the cats are inhabiting and how they move within that landscape.

Dr Keri Langridge, Saving Wildcats In-Situ Conservation Manager who is leading the tracking, said, “Most individuals have stayed relatively local to the release locations so far, while others have explored more widely across Badenoch and Strathspey. The cats are typically using a mixture of rough grassland, mixed woodland and riparian habitats, which provide prey such as mice and voles, as well as cover to hide from disturbance threats, including people and dogs.

“Camera traps which we have positioned across the release sites have also recorded videos of the animals exhibiting positive behaviours such as hunting prey.”

Like other native wildlife, wildcats are best left undisturbed. The wildcats and their den sites are protected by law and it is an offence to deliberately or recklessly disturb a wildcat or its place of rest. Whilst it would be extremely rare to see one of these elusive animals in the wild, the public are being urged to refrain from sharing any sighting locations with others.

Dr Helen Senn, Saving Wildcats Project Lead and RZSS Head of Science and Conservation Programmes, said, “It is still very early in the process but the first release of wildcats into Britain has been a success so far. Life in the wild is full of risks and while most of the released wildcats are currently doing well, we must remember that these are now wild animals that are likely to face significant challenges as we move into winter, with extreme weather and a decline in natural prey expected.”

The Saving Wildcats field team have recorded one mortality since the beginning of this year’s releases.

Helen continued “It would be highly unusual for all the released wildcats to survive the first year, even with the project’s careful preparations.

“The field team were alerted to a potential mortality through daily monitoring of movement data recorded by the GPS collars. They immediately searched for the wildcat at the last recorded location and were able to recover the body. A post-mortem examination carried out by our expert veterinary team revealed the cat sadly died of peritonitis, which is an infection in the abdominal cavity.

“These are the first trial releases and, based on experience from similar projects around the world, further releases and many more years of conservation action will be required to increase the likelihood of saving this iconic species in Scotland.”

Wildcats were released into the landscape using an approach known as ‘soft-release’, which includes an acclimatisation period in the animal’s intended release habitat. This involved conservationists moving wildcats from the conservation breeding for release centre based at RZSS’s Highland Wildlife Park into enclosures within Cairngorms Connect temporarily before their eventual release.

Studies show soft-release measures can help acclimatise individuals, reduce stress and aid in reducing post-release mortality. The decision to use a soft-release approach was made following extensive discussions with specialists from across the globe with significant experience in other conservation breeding for release projects.

A fundamental part of the Saving Wildcats project is engagement with landowners, land managers, ground staff and local communities in areas the released wildcats are inhabiting. The Saving Wildcats team is working closely with landowners who now have wildcats on their land, and the movement of these elusive animals.

Ellen Quinn-Gordon, Co-Op member pioneer for Newtonmore, Kingussie and Aviemore, said “It is so exciting that we are sharing our beautiful national park with wildcats again. Even though it is unlikely I will see one in the wild, knowing they are out there exploring their new home is fantastic. As one of our Local Co-op Community Fund causes, we are proud to know our members have contributed to such an important project."

In another fundamental step for the project, a total of 13 kittens have been born in the Saving Wildcats conservation breeding for release centre at RZSS’s Highland Wildlife Park this year. Once the kittens reach six-to-eight months old they will be transferred to pre-release enclosures to prepare for their release into the wild in summer 2024.

[ENDS]

Images 

Images and video are available at https://www.dropbox.com/sh/sscabpzwl8hica0/AACxRs6QHom2GBcOrgkV9hdWa?dl=0

 Notes to editors:  

• The conservation breeding and release of wildcats is being carried out by the Saving Wildcats partnership (#SWAforLIFE) led by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) in collaboration with NatureScot, Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS), The Cairngorms National Park Authority, Nordens Ark and Consejería de Sostenibilidad, Medio Ambiente y Economía Azul de la Junta de Andalucía.
• The project is funded with the contribution of the LIFE Programme of the European Union and the generous support of the Scottish Government, the Garfield Weston Foundation, the National Trust for Scotland, the People’s Trust for Endangered Species, The European Nature Trust, players of People’s Postcode Lottery, and Rewilding Europe's European Wildlife Comeback Fund.
• The wildcats were released using an approach known as ‘soft-release’, which includes an acclimatisation period in the animal’s intended release habitat. This involved moving wildcats from the conservation breeding for release centre at Highland Wildlife Park into enclosures within Cairngorms Connect temporarily before their eventual release - numerous studies show that soft-release measures can help acclimatise individuals, reduce stress and aid in reducing post-release mortality.
• Tracking information shows the released cats are inhabiting a mixture of landscape types, including grassland, open farmland, scrub and mixed, broadleaf and coniferous woodland
• The Saving Wildcats conservation partnership project began the first releases of wildcats into the Cairngorms National Park in June 2023 - rzss.org.uk/media-centre/article/22007/historic-milestone-reached-as-critically-endangered-wildcats-released-into-the-cairngorms-national-park/
• The births of 11 of the 13 kittens born in the conservation breeding for release centre were announced in July - rzss.org.uk/media-centre/article/22086/second-year-of-successful-breeding-at-saving-wildcats-conservation-breeding-for-release-centre/
• The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) is a wildlife conservation charity which owns Edinburgh Zoo and Highland Wildlife Park. We safeguard threatened species from extinction: org.uk
• NatureScot is Scotland's nature agency. Responding to the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change, we work to protect and restore nature by inspiring everyone to value our natural world. Our goal is a nature-rich, net-zero future for Scotland. For more information, visit our website: scot
• Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) is the Government body responsible for the protection and expansion of Scotland's forests and woodlands: gov.scot/
• The Cairngorms National Park Authority was set up to ensure that the unique aspects of the Cairngorms – both the natural environment and the local communities – are cared for, sustained and enhanced for current and future generations to enjoy. The Cairngorms National Park Authority provides leadership to all those involved in the Cairngorms and works in partnership with a range of communities, businesses, non-government organisations and public sector partners to deliver practical solutions on the ground
• Norden’s Ark, based in Sweden, works to ensure endangered animals have a future: nordensark.se/
• Junta de Andalucía, based in Spain, leads Europe’s most successful carnivore reintroduction of Iberian lynx: es/medioambiente/site/portalweb/
• Cairngorms Connect is a partnership of neighbouring land managers (Wildland Limited, Forestry and Land Scotland, RSPB Scotland and NatureScot) working towards a 200-year vision to enhance habitat, species and ecological process across a vast 600 square kilometre area within the Cairngorms National Park. It is the largest habitat restoration project in the UK and is funded by the Endangered Landscapes Programme
• For more information visit org.uk  

About Saving Wildcats (#SWAforLIFE)  

• Saving Wildcats (#SWAforLife) is a European partnership project dedicated to Scottish wildcat conservation and recovery. We aim to prevent the extinction of wildcats in Scotland by breeding and releasing them into the wild.

For further information please contact comms@rzss.org.uk or 0131 314 0383.