Numbers
increasing and range expanding
April 2013.
One of Scotland 's
rarest carnivores is showing encouraging signs of recovery, a new report has
highlighted. From Argyll to Aberdeenshire and Caithness
to the central belt the pine marten is proving that rare mammals can recover their
numbers, given the right conditions. And in the Year of Natural Scotland, it is
a real success story for an animal which has vanished from much of England and Wales .
A joint survey
by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and The Vincent
Wildlife Trust (VWT) shows the pine marten population has regained
ground across much of Scotland .
It is now re-colonising areas from which it has been absent for more than 100
years.
Pine martens
are still absent from much of Britain
"At a time when some native mammals are declining it is fantastic to see the pine marten population is recovering and expanding its range inScotland .
Pine martens are still absent from much of Britain
so the recovery in Scotland
is significant," Lizzie Croose, VWT's survey coordinator, confirmed.
"At a time when some native mammals are declining it is fantastic to see the pine marten population is recovering and expanding its range in
As in the rest
of Britain , Scotland 's pine
marten population suffered a major decline as a result of historical
persecution and woodland loss. By the early 20th century it was found only in
the North West Highlands.
Pine marten in
UK
The pine
marten (Martes martes) was extinct
throughout much of Britain
by the early 20th century. Small populations survived in Wales and the Marches
and in areas of northern England ,
but the most viable populations were still to be found only in North West
Scotland.
This study has
shown that the pine marten in Scotland
is making a good recovery. South of the Scottish border the situation is very
different, and the recovery taking place in Scotland
has not yet occurred in those parts of England
and Wales
where a few pine martens survived. Until the road casualty found last year near
Newtown , the last known carcass recorded in Wales was in
1971.
Making a
comeback across much of its former Scottish range
The species was given full legal protection in 1988 and following the expansion of plantation forest cover during the last century, is making a comeback across much of its former Scottish range. Signs of this gradual recovery were first recorded in surveys in the 1980s and 1990s.
The species was given full legal protection in 1988 and following the expansion of plantation forest cover during the last century, is making a comeback across much of its former Scottish range. Signs of this gradual recovery were first recorded in surveys in the 1980s and 1990s.
This latest
survey was carried out last summer (2012) when surveyors collected possible
pine marten scats (droppings) along survey areas on woodland tracks and paths.
This was DNA-tested to confirm its origin. Records of marten presence were also
collected from other sources, including Local Biological Record Centres and
other wildlife organisations.
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