Scotland Reaches 50 Wildcat Releases, With Kittens Born in the Wild Three Years Running
The Saving Wildcats project has now released 50 critically endangered wildcats into Scotland’s Cairngorms National Park since 2023, and released females have given birth in the wild for three years in a row.
Conservationists have now released 50 wildcats into the Scottish Highlands, the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) announced. The milestone came with the release of four wildcats this summer by the Saving Wildcats project, which has been returning the species to the Cairngorms National Park since 2023.
Released females are breeding in the wild
Females have given birth in the wild for three consecutive years, which suggests the population is starting to establish itself, the project said. The species still remains critically endangered in Scotland.
“To have released fifty wildcats in four years is a monumental step for the recovery of this iconic Scottish species.” — Dr Sarah Henshall, Head of Conservation, Cairngorms National Park Authority
Eleven of the released cats have died over three years, five of them in road collisions, and many had already survived in the wild for years and raised litters. The project considers that mortality rate highly successful, since rates are often higher in other translocation projects.
Spanish wildcats will widen the gene pool
Further releases will aim to boost numbers and genetic diversity, including wildcats bred with Spanish wildcats, the closest living genetic relatives of Scotland’s population. Dr Helen Senn of RZSS said a diverse gene pool will help the population adapt over the coming century, noting that wildfires this summer damaged known wildcat habitat in the park.
The milestone follows NatureScot’s publication of a national wildcat strategy that builds on the project’s lessons. The 50th release was also covered by Deadline News.
Similar efforts to rebuild native predator populations are under way elsewhere, such as northern quolls released into a fenced sanctuary in Australia.
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