Fears are growing over “complacency” in the battle to protect and grow Scotland’s red squirrel population, more than 10 years after the latest conservation strategy was drawn up.
It comes after a Scottish Government minister claimed the “last isolated pockets” of invasive grey squirrels to be found anywhere in the North East are holding out in Aberdeen.
This is despite the annual Great Scottish Squirrel Survey warning that greys had been spotted in traditional “red-only zones”, with evidence that they are travelling along tree-lined rivers such as the Tay.
North East Conservative MSP Maurice Golden queried the “quality of government data” as he said greys are spotted in Dundee and Angus “all the time”.
READ MORE: Contraceptives for grey squirrels will save Britain’s trees and help get us to net zero, says Scots peer
Greys carry the deadly squirrelpox virus, with the first recorded case north of the Central Belt being detected in Fife last year. A walker found the dead red squirrel in woods north of Dunfermline in March.
Mr Golden asked for an estimate of red and grey squirrel numbers across four “priority areas” — Tayside, the north east, Argyll to Stirling via the Trossachs, and south Scotland. This is where grey squirrel officers work with volunteers and landowners to control numbers.
Grey squirrels carry the deadly squirrelpox and pose a threat to reds in the wild
(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
Climate action minister Alasdair Allan wasn’t able to describe which parts of the four priority areas still have populations of greys. However, he said that £1million was going to the Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels project between this year and 2026.
The money has “enabled a concentrated effort to eradicate the last remaining isolated population of grey squirrels in the North East of Scotland”. Mr Allan added: “I should clarify that the last remaining, isolated population of grey squirrels in the North East of Scotland is found in the city of Aberdeen.”
‘The bastion of the Highland fault line is holding up… for now’
Mr Golden said: “The minister suggested that there’s some sort of gang of greys holding out in Aberdeen city. People out and about in Tayside see greys all the time. I’m worried about complacency setting in here.
“The bastion of the Highland fault line might be holding up for now, but I think the quality of government data is really challenged by reports. If it wasn’t for the public reports to the Great Scottish Squirrel Survey, the government wouldn’t know much about the dangers greys pose to our native reds.
“It’s now almost 10 years since the last Scottish strategy for conservation was published, and it’s vital the SNP take note of the increased numbers across the board.”
A ‘handful’ of grey squirrels were sighted around Dunkeld last year
Scotland is home to around 80% of the UK’s red squirrel population, with up to 450,000 found mostly in the Highlands. But while red numbers continue to recover, greys are travelling northwards with a “handful” of sightings in areas such as Dunkeld.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We are aware there are grey squirrels elsewhere, for example in Tayside, however, to clarify the last remaining pocket of isolated greys in the North East of Scotland priority area is in Aberdeen city centre. This is what the specific parliamentary answer in question was referring to.”
For more news, follow us on Facebook and Twitter but never miss the latest top headlines and sign up to our daily newsletter here.