Non-Native Scottish Animals

Scotland is home to an abundance of wildlife, but some non-native species threaten its inhabitants. Much like animals in the UK.

Red Squirrel

Scotland is famed for its iconic wildlife experiences; witnessing a red squirrel climbing a tree is one such momentous sight. Unfortunately, only 140,000 of these mammals exist across all of Great Britain and 75% reside in Scotland – their numbers are steadily dwindling due to competition with non-native grey squirrels which are larger, stronger and can out-compete reds for food, nesting sites and territory – not forgetting they carry Squirrelpox virus which only attacks red squirrels but not greys – creating another iconic Scotland wildlife moment!

Conservationists are working tirelessly in red squirrel habitat to halt its decline and create conditions where reds can thrive again, such as managing woodland and reintroducing red squirrels into pine forests. On Anglesey alone, a natural population was allowed to recover through eradicating grey squirrels, becoming today Wales’s largest red squirrel population.

Red squirrels are light-weight rodents that enjoy eating tree seeds such as acorns, hazel nuts, beech mast and pine cones in particular the Caledonian Forest. Red squirrels use their feet or hands to open pine nuts by rubbing or shaking them with them and their incisors to strip away woody scales from its shell using their teeth; once opened they use sound waves to determine whether a pine nut has reached full ripeness by hearing its rattle!

The Scottish Wildlife Trust, together with partner organisations RSPB Scotland, Forestry Commission Scotland and Scottish Land & Estates are currently carrying out a nationwide red squirrel conservation programme throughout Scotland’s priority areas. This work, known as SSRS has already demonstrated that regional decline can be stemmed through co-ordinated landscape-scale grey squirrel control efforts.

Mountain Hare

Mountain Hare (Lepus timidus) is an integral component of high upland moorland habitats across Scotland and England, playing an essential role in both countries’ high upland moorland areas. A member of the lagomorph family, it stands out from similar brown hare species in terms of both size and colour differences; commonly found throughout Britain’s Highlands as well as islands such as Shetland Hoy Rum Eigg Skye

Mountain hares tend to be nocturnal throughout most of the year but become much more active during their breeding period between March and September. To take full advantage of daytime counts as an alternative survey method in conjunction with transect surveys in VMHS Project, daytime counts were used instead of nighttime counts as one measure for assessment.

Monitoring hares relies heavily on volunteers. To maximize this approach, the VMHS project worked to engage groups who frequent upland areas – like hillwalkers and climbers – into participating in its survey. Furthermore, it encouraged ‘outside the box’ observing techniques allowing people to record hares or other mammals when out and about.

The 104 Hare Squares Completed during this Project had good geographical coverage, though there were gaps in some areas – for example Dumfries & Galloway and some Western Isles such as Skye Lewis and Orkney were missing from coverage. Furthermore there were several squares outside their known range in areas without many or no Hares such as Borders and Fife.

Red Deer

Red Deer are one of Britain’s largest wild mammals and can often be seen roaming Scotland’s Highlands in herds. Led by a matriarch, male deer (stags) fight for territory and control over females during mating season (known as ‘the rut’ in autumn). Female and male herds spread across open hill habitats throughout the year in groups of up to 40 animals that feed on grass, sedges and rushes during summer; dwarf shrubs such as heather becomes more important during winter; as well as browsing tree shoots and berries!

Birds of prey are highly adaptable creatures and can be found across a wide range of environments including woodland habitats including ancient and planted forests as well as moorlands. Rivers and floodplains tend to be avoided while dense forests tend to be avoided in favour of areas nearer their peripheries.

Red deer are unique among upland wildlife species because their movement is directly tied to land ownership. Therefore, managing them sustainably in Scotland’s uplands requires partnership work among landowners, local deer management groups and NatureScotland charity.

Scientists studying the genetics of deer on South Uist are uncovering new insights into how these animals have changed over time. Their discoveries shed light on how herds first colonised Scotland 5,000 years ago from mainland Europe.

Capercaillie

Capercaillie are winter birds that consume pine needles from certain kinds of stunted trees, in addition to eating shoots, buds, berries and seeds from them. Males tend to be solitary while females form small family groups and during breeding season hens may be seen with chicks but no male helps feed them [1]. Females lay between 5-12 eggs in ground nests which they take care of themselves [1].

In the 1700s, this species became extinct throughout most of Europe but was later reintroduced as part of Scotland’s wider rewilding programme. While its current population remains small, according to NatureScot’s review low breeding success is more of an obstacle than hunting; climate change (wetter springs reducing insect availability for chicks), disturbance from people and their dogs, are all threats that threaten its continued presence here.

At the conclusion of breeding season, male capercaillies congregate on leks (dancefloors), where males vie with one another to win females’ affection. Males engage in elaborate displays that involve heads erect, wings flaring and beards bristling – likening their gestures to that of a pop of cork in a bottle! Courtship calls consist of clicks, trills and wheezes similar to popping corks from bottles; fights may break out between rival males at certain lek counts – wildlife ecologist Kenny Kortland of Forestry and Land Scotland recently reported on four forest lek counts that showed increases in capercaillie populations despite an overall trend toward retreat across most of its range – he hopes these results will encourage others to replicate his efforts!