New hope on the horizon for survival of Scottish wildcats
THEY might not have been born free – but Scotland’s newest wildcat kittens may soon be let out of captivity.
The last of Britain’s native wild felines is facing extinction, but three litters of new kittens offer new hope for its survival.
Eight kittens born at a conservation centre are the future of the species, conservationists have said, with the Scottish wildcat now “functionally extinct” in the wild in the UK.
A 2019 study found that habitat loss and interbreeding with domestic cats meant that Scotland’s wild population was no longer “viable”, so efforts to preserve the species are focused on breeding and releasing cats in captivity.
Sixteen wildcats were paired up earlier in the year at the Saving Wildcats conservation centre at the Highland Wildlife Park. It has now welcomed eight kittens in three litters, with hopes of more births over the coming weeks.
David Barclay, Saving Wildcats conservation manager, said: “Put simply, these kittens are the future of wildcats in Scotland.”
He added: “Decades of extensive research have shown their species is highly likely to go extinct in Britain if we do not carry out releases to restore our critically endangered wildcat population.”
The offspring will be sexed, microchipped, vaccinated and health checked at around eight to 10 weeks old.
Saving Wildcats is working with national and international experts to restore the critically endangered wildcat population by breeding and releasing them into carefully selected locations in the Cairngorms National Park. Planning is under way for the first releases in 2023, and will be subject to receiving a translocation licence.
After a pre-release training programme to help them learn how to behave in the wild, Saving Wildcats plans to release 20 of the animals each year, wearing a GPS collar.