Rare wildcat kittens ‘could throw species a lifeline’

Two rare Scottish wildcat kittens have begun venturing out of the their den to explore their surroundings for the first time since they were born in April.

The mini “Highland tigers” could play a key role in the future survival of the species, which is one of the most endangered in the UK.

Wildcats once roamed the whole of the country, but are now restricted to a few isolated areas in the Highlands.

It is the UK’S last remaining native feline, but numbers have crashed over the past century. They almost became extinct in the early 1900s.

Scottish wildcats are notoriously elusive so accurately gauging numbers is difficult, but experts fear there could be fewer than 150 left in the wild, and they may not be purebred.

A five-year national conservation project, Scottish Wildcat Action, was launched in 2013 in an 11th-hour bid to save the species from vanishing.

The new kittens, which were born at Edinburgh Zoo, will join a conservation breeding programme run by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) as part of the project.

It’s hoped the scheme can save the species from disappearing in the wild through future reintroductions.

David Barclay, RZSS cat conservation project officer, said: “Scottish wildcats are facing severe threats due to crossbreeding with domestic and feral cats, disease transfer and accidental persecution.

“Wildcat populations have suffered a sharp decline in Scotland in recent decades, with studies suggesting there may be as few as 115 Scottish wildcats left in the wild, making them one of the UK’S most endangered mammals.

“Our conservation breeding programme and work with partners in Scottish Wildcat Action, the national conservation project, is therefore vital.

“Everybirthisapotentiallifeline and improves the chances of a genetically healthy population that can act as a source for future wildcat release.”

The species has been present in Scotland for around 9,000 years, since the end of the last ice age.

To the untrained eye it looks very like a pet tabby cat, but the Scottish wildcat is bigger, sturdier and has longer legs.

It also has a distinctive thick, blunt-ended tail with wide black stripes and a black tip.

RZSS is a key partner in Scottish Wildcat Action, which brings together more than 20 other organisations in the conservation, scientific and land management communities.

The project is funded by the

0 The new kittens born at Edinburgh Zoo will form a key part of the effort to ensure the breed’s survival Scottishgovernmentandheritage Lottery Fund. The breeding programme is supported by People’s Postcode Lottery.

0 Two of the Scottish wildcat kittens explore their new den