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Kitten may help save wildcats from extinction

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Published Date: 26 May 2007
By TOM PUGH
THE birth of a rare Scottish wildcat kitten has been feted as a step towards guarding the species against extinction.
The unnamed male kitten was born to two pure bred Scottish wildcats at Wildwood Discovery Park in Kent.

Its parents, Hamish and Flora, are among only 400 Scottish wildcats left in the world.

Wildcats have been around for more than two million years, sharing the land with mammoths long before man appeared.

Peter Smith, chief executive of the Wildwood Trust, said that centuries of persecution and deforestation had reduced the number of Scottish wildcats massively. They are now Britain's rarest mammals.

The Wildwood Trust is holding a competition to name the kitten born earlier this month.



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  • Last Updated: 25 May 2007 8:48 PM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
 
1

donald,

weegieland 26/05/2007 07:18:20

Touch not the cat bot a glove

2

Murchadh Ruadh,

26/05/2007 07:43:42

What is (unaccountably) not mentioned here is the fact that the most serious threat to Wild Cat is hybridisation with escaped (feral) domestic cats. You can stop persecution and restore habitat, but you can't clean up the genotype.

3

R. Siller,

Edinburgh 26/05/2007 11:01:48

Also not discussed is how a single kitten born in captivity - in Kent(!) is going to save the wild population in Scotland. Will it be released? I doubt it.

M. Ruadh is correct that the biggest threat to the Wild cat as we know it is hybridisation - to the extent that it is questionable whether there are any "pure bred" Scottish wild cats left.

4

Adopado,

local 26/05/2007 14:47:35

Unfortunately the basic knowledge on Wildcat numbers appears to be based on guesswork. There has been no reliable attempt at measuring numbers (as far as I can discover), so 400 is, at best, an educated guess which could be far wide of the mark.

5

Murchadh Ruadh,

26/05/2007 17:23:43

#5 - Even if they do, there are so few Wild Cats that they are of total insignificance in the context of other - real - threats that Red Squirrels face.

6

Conan,

Here 26/05/2007 22:10:10

#5 - yes, they eat anything that stands or sits long enough to be caught, played with or eaten. Like all felines, wild, feral or domestic they are a scourge on the landscape and I for one will continue to slaughter them by the hundreds each year as long as I can shoot straight.

7

Murchadh Ruadh,

27/05/2007 07:11:59

#7 - Living up to your barbarian reputation, I see, Conan - ignorance, bluster, and fine disregard for the law.

The Scottish wildcat has full legal protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act and under the European Habitats andSpecies Directive.

8

Conan,

Here 27/05/2007 07:43:17

Yes, #8 - and that is exactly why so many other species are threatened with extinction by this vermin.


 

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