Scottish Wildcat Association

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The Scottish Wildcat Association was a charity founded in 2008 by filmmaker Steve Piper with the aims of conserving the Scottish wildcat, [1] [2] which is critically endangered in the UK. Threatened by hybridisation with feral domestic cats, recent estimates have suggested that only 35 pure Scottish wildcats exist in the wild, with no pure Scottish wildcats in captivity. [3] [4] [5]

The charity raised awareness of the wildcat considerably through strong media engagement, [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] and also used Piper's documentary film Last of the Scottish Wildcats to build interest in funding conservation action.

In 2008 the charity began to establish the first fieldwork project directly aimed at conserving the wildcat in Scotland in the West Highlands, calling it Wildcat Haven after a book by Mike Tomkies, [17] patron and an Honourable Lifelong Member of the project.

Including genetics research, field surveys, engagement with local communities, radio collaring, feline disease surveys and feral cat neutering and health checks, the project was designed in consultation with a range of world leading experts designed to study the wildcat at a uniquely high level of detail whilst carrying out comprehensive, long term and geographically modular conservation actions. [18]

The charity was wound down in 2018 by which time the Wildcat Haven project had been established as an independent CIC, dedicated to the fieldwork project. [19] The CIC was publicly launched in 2014 with the announcement that the project had successfully removed feral cats from a remote 250 square miles (650 km2) peninsula, Ardnamurchan, through a humane neutering methodology, and planned further expansion. [20] [21] [22]

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References

  1. ↑ "Scottish Wildcat — Wildcat Haven".
  2. ↑ "Wildcat Haven - Saving Scottish Wildcats".
  3. ↑ "Extinction by stealth: How long can the Scottish wildcat survive?". TheGuardian.com . 28 September 2013.
  4. ↑ "Scottish Wildcat".
  5. ↑ "Wildcat Haven - Saving Scottish Wildcats".
  6. ↑ http://www.scotsman.com/news/environment/expats-fund-bid-to-save-the-scottish-wildcat-1-1365722, Archived 2014-09-03 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ "Wildcats could be extinct in months".
  8. ↑ "True Scottish wildcats will be wiped out 'in months' - Environment - Scotsman.com". Archived from the original on 25 October 2012.
  9. ↑ "Scottish wildcat extinct within months, association says". BBC News. 13 September 2012.
  10. ↑ "Why the Scottish wildcat is staring extinction in the face". TheGuardian.com . 15 September 2012.
  11. ↑ "'2013 will decide whether the Scottish wildcat lives or dies'". Independent.co.uk . 28 December 2012.
  12. ↑ "Scottish wildcat plan 'will not save animal'".
  13. ↑ "Extinction by stealth: How long can the Scottish wildcat survive?". TheGuardian.com . 28 September 2013.
  14. ↑ "Haven to save the wildcat from total extinction".
  15. ↑ "Scottish wildcat 'safe haven' set up in Ardnamurchan". BBC News. 15 July 2014.
  16. ↑ "'This is last chance for the Scottish wildcat'".
  17. ↑ "Wildcat Haven - Saving Scottish Wildcats".
  18. ↑ "Wildcat Haven - Saving Scottish Wildcats".
  19. ↑ "Wildcat Haven - Saving Scottish Wildcats".
  20. ↑ "Haven to save the wildcat from total extinction".
  21. ↑ "Scottish wildcat 'safe haven' set up in Ardnamurchan". BBC News. 15 July 2014.
  22. ↑ "'This is last chance for the Scottish wildcat'".
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