The Great Scottish Squirrel Survey This Red Squirrel Week we’re calling on people all over Scotland to get outdoors, explore nature and be on the lookout for tufted ears and bushy tails for the return of the Great Scottish Squirrel Survey. Report your sightings of both red and grey squirrels between 2-8 October to provide us with a snapshot of… […]
…is working in priority areas across Scotland to protect red squirrels from the spread of the non-native grey squirrel. Gill Hatcher, SSRS Communications & Engagement Officer said: “We are asking everyone in Scotland to go out and enjoy the outdoors during Red Squirrel Week, look out for both red and grey squirrels and add your sightings to our online map… […]
Original Author: Lorna Hutchison Most people seem to think that taking school children into the woods getting them to cook lunch on an open campfire, then giving them axes and knives is crazy. But not at Green Aspirations. Over the last few weeks of the summer holidays I joined the team at Green Aspirations and school pupils from all… […]
…like much, but locating and intercepting the very early grey squirrel colonisers is a difficult job – needles and haystacks being an apt analogy – and your reports enable us to narrow our search. Although the risk of grey squirrel presence in the area has been reduced, we of course do not know how many grey squirrels remain in Pitlochry,… […]
…because they thrive in the new environment into which they’ve been introduced and, in doing so, impact on and disrupt the delicate balance of that natural ecosystem. Their impacts can be large and obvious, like the presence of a stand of Japanese knotweed, or subtle like the reduction in invertebrate biodiversity in a river when the banks are dominated by… […]
…dreys. Unlike summer dreys, which are open platforms, similar in design to birds’ nests, winter dreys are broadly spherical and enclosed, but for a small entrance hole. They are constructed of interwoven twigs on the outside with softer furnishings of moss and dried leaves to give some home comforts on the inside. New dreys are usually built, and existing ones… […]
…which are hard to see the rest of the year. Squirrels are arboreal, spending most of their time in tree tops, so you don’t often find their tracks unless there happens to be a good mud or sand patch en route to their favourite feeder. Fresh squirrel tracks, with my glove as a size guide! Photograph: Emma Rawling. Winter… […]
…potential for wide range trapping at new sites. However, land manager control has proven to create an effective network of red squirrel protection, with landowners having the potential to provide five times more trapping effort (coverage). Encouraging this wide base of support for project delivery has always been an aspiration with Scottish Land and Estates, one of the founding project… […]
…freely giving their time to protect red squirrels. They work with passion, enthusiasm and commitment, and have a massive amount of knowledge which they willingly share. For me, this demonstrates a key point for learning and how we can further our knowledge and skills base, even in an area which is new to us. Engaging children in red squirrel conservation… […]
…as a base, and then shape the knitting to cover. I try and make the knitadermy animals look as realistic as possible with the aid of many photographs… No animals are harmed during this process!’ Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrel would like to thank Rosy and the Deeside Knitwits for all their hard work, dedication, and help not only with… […]
