A revised national strategy to protect red squirrels has been called for after a five-year project to build community action for the protected species.
A line running from Helensburgh to Montrose is seen as key to preserving the reds in the Scottish Highlands, with sightings in the Loch Lomond area and Rosneath Peninsula being monitored.
A new report says there was a ‘grey squirrel population boom’ in 2020 because lockdowns restricted control measures, meaning the invasive species could spread unconfined on the west side of Loch Lomond, the Gareloch and the head of Loch Long.
“Once pandemic restrictions had eased, considerable effort invested in tracking these down and attempting removal was only partially successful, and ongoing sightings and feeder-box monitoring will be required to detect further grey squirrels and prevent establishment of new populations centred on these sites, ” says Saving An Icon, the final report from the developing community action phase of Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels
The £2.4m project aimed to find sustainable and affordable ways by which to halt the decline, and enable re-establishment in some areas, of Scotland’s red squirrels – which account for around 75% of the total UK population.
Red squirrels are a protected species, but for many years have experienced declines due to the invasive non-native grey squirrel introduced to Britain from North America in Victorian times.
Grey squirrels out-compete reds for food and living space, as well as carrying squirrelpox, a virus that doesn’t harm them but is deadly to reds.
Since 2017 grey squirrel control and monitoring efforts have increased dramatically across Scotland with red squirrels remaining and gaining ground in significant areas.
Eileen Stuart, NatureScot deputy director of nature and climate change, said: “The red squirrel is one of our most iconic species, and it’s heartening to reflect on the progress that has been made through this project to protect and expand populations.
“It is particularly encouraging to see the number of individuals, communities and landowners who have volunteered their time to make a significant contribution to help protect Scotland’s red squirrels.
“NatureScot remains committed to ensuring the important work undertaken by Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels continues, and this project has demonstrated that a mix of voluntary and funded action can provide a sustainable long term future for this much-loved species.”
Effort is focussed on the Highland Line Control Zone, the 10-kilometre-wide stretch of landscape to the south of a notional line running from Helensburgh to Montrose.
It is thought that red squirrels thrive in areas where there are pine martens, and the report states of this region: “Anecdotally, many residents within the Highland Line Control Zone have reported recovery locally of red squirrels after many years’ absence.
“There is evidence that the spread of pine martens in the region may be having a constraining impact on the grey squirrel population, allowing red squirrels to recolonise some of the areas from which grey squirrels had displaced them.”
Sarah Robinson, director of conservation at the Scottish Wildlife Trust, the lead partner on the project, said “It’s fantastic to see the successes for red squirrels in Scotland due to the exceptional work put in by staff, landowners, and volunteers. It is essential now to recognise that this work needs to continue, and the recommendations detailed in the report are inputted into the delivery plans for the new Scottish Biodiversity Strategy to 2045.”
Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels is a partnership project led by the Scottish Wildlife Trust and supported by the Scottish Government and The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players, along with other partners.
There have been very few confirmed cases of squirrel pox in Scotland despite thousands of grey squirrels being trapped, killed and tested during the nationwide cull of greys to “protect” red squirrels. Some of the conservation charities involved have been keen to ask the public to report sightings of grey squirrels but not so keen to explain that these reports will result in the trapping and killing of the greys. There have also been reports that in areas where greys have been culled predators such as pine martens and raptors have been forced to predate on the harder to catch red squirrels. Nature is far more complex than SNH (now trading as Nature Scot) and others think it is.