Wildcats caught on camera in Scotland

Wildcat - SNH

The three-month study of Scottish wildcats took place in the Seafield and Strathspey Estates within the Cairngorms National Park in north east Scotland last year.

The work, a joint project with the Wildlife Research Conservation Unit (WildCRU), part of the Zoology Department at the University of Oxford, represents a new application of a technology which is increasingly popular with amateur naturalists and wildlife professionals.

Just 400 Wildcats left
Previously widespread across the UK, the Scottish wildcat is now thought to be limited to the north of Scotland with some estimates of remaining numbers as low as 400. It has suffered through habitat loss, particularly the loss of forests, hunting, and persecution, but particularly from hybridisation with domestic and feral cats.

The project comprised three different surveys at the same locations with 20 camera trap stations set up beside animal trails between February to May 2010. The first survey did not use bait or lures, while the second survey used pheasant or partridge bait.

Baits
The final survey used camera ‘traps' baited with valerian to lure the wildcats. The herb is believed to have an effect similar to that of catnip on domestic cats and a stick smeared with an undiluted solution of the herb was used between positioned cameras to attract the wildcats. However it appears the fussy felines turned their noses up and images were not recorded by the cameras in this last survey.

A ‘pelage scoring system', devised in a collaboration between WildCRU and the National Museums of Scotland, was used in which seven characteristics of wildcat coats - markings, tail appearance, etc - were used to identify which of the cats captured on camera were Scottish wildcats.

3000 photographs just 4 wildcats
More than 3,000 photographs of different species were taken over the period. Of the 13 ‘wild-living' cats photographed, four were considered to be wildcats based on pelage characteristics. The remaining nine were considered to be hybrids.

Professor David Macdonald, director of WildCRU and projected leader, confirmed: "Camera-trapping may be the most important addition to the naturalist's armoury since the invention of binoculars! It has revolutionised surveys of rare animals in remote corners of the world, but now it is doing so in our own backyard.

"The wildcat may be the rarest native mammal in Britain, and as an emblem of Scotland's wilderness it should be a top conservation priority - we hope WildCRU's breakthrough with these camera traps will be an important step to saving it."

Jenny Bryce of SNH said: "We are encouraged that Scottish wildcats were recorded as part of this project, although in low numbers. The problems with hybridisation with feral cats are well known. However, this trial illustrates that camera trapping can be an effective method for identifying the presence of wildcats and where they are sufficiently numerous for gaining an estimate of populations and trends.

"As a result of this work we recommend that future systematic surveys use 20 camera trap stations as a minimum and we would also recommend that two camera traps be used at each monitoring station to increase the chances of capturing a cat and getting images of both sides of the animal."

Frank Law of Seafield Estate said: "This pilot survey suggests that camera traps can provide an invaluable tool for the wildlife management on the estate by allowing us to establish what cats are present that are not necessarily seen by estate staff, both for protection and for predator control purposes.

Predator control
"This would offer better protection for wildcats while allowing the estate to target any feral cats present. Appropriate predator control continues to play a significant part in estate management, while more recently woodland has been specifically targeted due to it being recognised as highly important breeding areas for capercaillie."