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Cat
Kin Conundrum
____________________________________________________
Posted: 15th August
2008
Numbers of feral cats in the UK are increasing, but you'd be very lucky to see one of these.
It's a true Scottish Wildcat. These feline beasties have been described as the 'British
Tiger', and although there are numerous sightings of other escaped big cats in Britain, the Scottish Wildcat is our last remaining native wild feline.
Less than a hundred years ago Wildcats could be found in many parts of Britain.
Today, the last few hundred individuals are confined to the highlands of Scotland, and even they are at risk.
Wildcats numbers were decimated in the last century by deforestation, and by gamekeepers who considered them a threat to game birds.
More recent studies have revealed that they actually prefer to eat rabbits and rodents.
Today there is a new threat to Wildcats. It's not really a lack of
offspring that's the issue. The problem is that true Wildcats are interbreeding with feral domestic cats producing hybrid kittens.
They're quite literally breeding themselves out of existence. If they continue breeding in this way, true Scottish Wildcats as we know them today could become extinct.
Some conservationists believe we should step in and start a captive breeding
program before it's too late. Only a handful of suitable Wildcats
remain in captivity, so it's likely that kittens would need to be removed under
license from the remaining genetically pure wild stock.
The majority of Wildcat kittens are born in the month of August. There can be up to five kittens in a litter.
They're blind at birth, but have a full coat of fur. At just one week old they are able to
display their wild credentials. They hiss and spit at anything which upsets them.
To get a better understanding of the distribution of Wildcats in Scotland there's a survey being coordinated (2008 - 2009)
on behalf of Scottish Natural Heritage by Adrian Davis. If you see a Scottish Wildcat (dead or alive) send details of your sighting to
naiadecology@hotmail.co.uk
 Mammal
Detective
A superb guide to all those tracks and trails (holes, footprints, food
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Related Links:
UK Safari Wildcat Fact File
UK Safari Mammal Section
UK Safari News
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