Call Attenborough! Rare wildcat AND pine marten on camera
THEY are two of the most elusive creatures in the country.
So you can imagine one tourist’s surprise when he spotted a Scottish wildcat and a pine marten facing off in a ‘once-in-a-lifetime sighting’.
Neil Bletcher, 56, caught the pair on camera during a trip to the Ardnamurchan peninsula in Argyll.
The IT engineer, from Bridge of Weir, Renfrewshire, and his retired wife Jane, 66, had been staying at their holiday cottage at the time.
He said: ‘I was up there for the weekend. I put food out for the pine marten then the cat appeared and they had a wee face-off. The pine marten did a dance and the cat took a swipe at it but after that they didn’t bother with each other.
‘There have been a few pine martens about in the past but wildcats are very rare. Until you DNA test them you don’t know how pure they are but it had all the right markings.
‘The twin encounter was a unique experience and a once-in-a-lifetime sighting – one I will probably never see again.’
Scottish wildcat populations have fallen sharply, with studies suggesting there may be as few as 115 left in the wild. The species is threatened by cross-breeding with domestic and feral cats, disease transfer and accidental persecution.
The Scottish wildcat – which can sprint at up to 30 miles per hour – resembles a muscular domestic tabby thanks to its coat of brown and black stripes.
Pine martens, which can live for ten years, inhabit holes in trees, deserted squirrel dreys or bird nests. They feed on rodents, birds, eggs, insects and fruit.
Ardnamurchan is also home to otters, golden eagles and white-tailed eagles.