News
WildCRU’s Scottish Wildcat work highlighted
The Scotsman newspaper website recently ran an article about the work being done on the Scottish Wildcat by WildCRU’s Dr Ruairidh Campbell.
From the article: Wildcats, which live only in the Highlands, are rarer than the Bengal tiger.
The photos show wildcats playing with bait, and a black mother cat with an army of tabby kittens. Other pictures show a wildcat scratching a post, and the mobile phone photos show a kitten hiding in long grass.
Two night images taken with infrared cameras have also been released, showing what is thought to be a pure wildcat, although DNA tests have not yet been completed.
Dr Campbell said: “There are very few pure wildcats – the worry is that none are left. About 12 to 15 per cent of cats we see look like they could be pure. There’s an old estimate that says around 400 are left, so it goes with that.
“Hopefully by the end of February we will know whether there are any left.”
The full article can be read here. Information on WildCRU’s Scottish Wildcat project can be found here.
