SCOTLAND’S MOST AT-RISK SPECIES

MAMMALS Water vole - numbers have crashed due to habitat loss and predation by mink. Wildcat - experts fear only 110 of the native felines remain, being driven to extinction through hybridisation with domestic cats. Red squirrel - around 121,000 remain in Scotland, being outcompeted by alien grey squirrels and killed off by squirrel pox virus. BIRDS Tree sparrow numbers fell by 93% from 1970 to 2008. Capercaillie - with fewer than 1,200 left, the species is in grave danger of disappearing. Curlew - numbers have fallen by 43% since the mid-1990s,. Roseate tern - it’s thought there are just 56 occupied nests across the whole UK. Corncrake - only 1,059 males were counted in the latest survey. INVERTEBRATES Chequered skipper butterfly - now found only in a small area of western Scotland. Freshwater pearl mussel - key threats are from illegal fishing and pollution of rivers. FISH Vendace - this salmon family member is found in just two water bodies in Scotland. Basking shark - it’s thought protected status is aiding recovery of the species.