…These isolated areas are often too small to support healthy and sustainable populations of wildlife, including red squirrels. Frequently asked questions What is squirrelpox and what can be done about it? Squirrelpox virus (SQPV) is carried by grey squirrels without causing any symptoms, but causes fatal disease in red squirrels. It produces weeping scabs around the eyes, nose, mouth,… […]
Original Author: Mary-Anne Collis Conservation Officer Mary-Anne Collis gives us an update on what’s been happening in Argyll, Trossachs and Stirlingshire. We’ve been very busy in the Argyll, Trossachs and Stirlingshire region this year. I’ve been on a personal mission to say hello to as many people as possible, spreading the word about submitting your squirrel sightings, both red… […]
…Loiuse Bessant What seems to be happening is that something is disrupting the moult sequence. Back in the 1980s, when I was doing capture-mark-recapture studies of wild red squirrels, I was able follow a couple of dozen individuals through two full years of coat-changes: none of them ever showed this tendency to moult the winter coat too early, and I’d… […]
…greys. A good mix of different coniferous trees is essential, however, to provide a sufficiently varied diet. Many commercial plantations planted in the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s only contain one tree species (typically Sitka Spruce), which limits the range of food for red squirrels and other animals. After all, a plate full of Brussel sprouts doesn’t make a Christmas dinner…. […]
…glue, an elastic band and a whole punch or pen to get started. © Jo Foo Instructions If you do see any squirrels this week from your homemade hide, while scavenging or through crafted binoculars, you can add these to our interactive map of sightings here. Reporting sightings as part of the Great Scottish Squirrel Survey is a really… […]
…squirrel left unharmed by the incident, and Mr Higgins reported the sighting to Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels, who monitor squirrel populations across Scotland. Mary-Anne Collis, Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels Conservation Officer said: “People will be much more used to seeing squirrels in the woods but this sighting is doubly surprising because it’s the first recorded red squirrel in Plean since… […]
Saving Scotland Red Squirrels: Developing Community Action ran from 2017 – 2022. One of the aims of this phase of the project was to set up and equip a network of volunteer groups in South Scotland capable of independently taking forward red squirrel conservation in the region. As such, in April 2022, 13 of the Red Squirrel Networks in… […]
…highly invasive grey squirrel could also spread further into the Grampians and the Highlands, threatening Scotland’s largest populations of red squirrels. Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels is encouraging people to report sightings of both red and grey squirrels online. The project is also looking for volunteers in the area to support its vital conservation work. Sarah Woodfin, Monitoring Officer, North East… […]
…2015-2025. Robyn Stewart, Species and Habitats Officer & Red Squirrel Species Lead at RSPB Scotland, tells us more: The current Scottish Strategy for Red Squirrel Conservation has been primarily delivered through the partnership project Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels – initially though its Developing Community Action phase (2017 – 2022) and more recently in its Transition phase (2022-2024). With… […]
…the Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels project to reduce the risk of squirrelpox spread. Biosecurity is big news at present due to our concerns about the new Coronavirus in humans. In Britain, another virus, spread between squirrel species has proven invariably lethal to its new host – the native red squirrel. Squirrelpox is a pox virus with many of the… […]
