…sightings while out walking locally brought in further reports, and we were able to target close monitoring to a few specific sites. In February, we were able to confirm grey squirrel presence in Pitlochry and initiate grey squirrel control measures in early spring. Finally, we can report success in removing the first grey squirrel from Pitlochry. This may not seem… […]
…part of the centre and will have very little human interaction whilst he learns the skills he will need for the future. Finally, he will be taken to a release site where the squirrels are fed and from that point he will be free. Rusty weighing in at an impressive 226g. A fantastic turn-around in fortunes- he has nearly tripled… […]
…the wood into feeder boxes in only 2 days! The squirrel survey is carried out each spring during March and April. It’s a huge undertaking, only possible with the efforts of volunteers. There are 115 survey sites across south Scotland, and each survey site needs four feeder boxes. Feeder boxes are cleaned and re-used most of the time, but we… […]
…what you up to today? Sandy: I’m here in sunny Moray to help you guys at Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels raise awareness about the project and meet as many folk as I can! We red squirrels appreciate your efforts. Steve: Thanks for the help Sandy, you’re always popular. Moray’s a great place for red squirrels- loads of conifer woodland and,… […]
…various areas over the years, targeted grey squirrel control work has ensured that the local red squirrel populations have successfully recovered. Research published by Professor Andy White and colleagues has shown that when grey squirrel numbers are kept low, red squirrels are given enough time to repopulate an area after suffering a major decline. Nicole Still, Programme Manager for Saving… […]
…and in the south since 2013. In recent years results have indicated that red squirrel populations have stabilised, following several decades of decline. In the south of Scotland (Dumfries & Galloway, the Scottish Borders and parts of Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire), the number of survey sites reporting red squirrels remained between 51-52%, but encouragingly, the number of sites with grey… […]
…to see this- watch it right to the end! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZXZfnzXA4E This footage was caught just after 6am in early May. It clearly shows a tawny owl swoop in and land on the tree just above where the squirrel was. Amazing! Now what we don’t know is what the tawny owl was up to. It may well have been sizing up… […]
…blue to purple as both species began to show up. And finally, in 2017, the site returned a ‘red only’ result, the first time in this area since the survey began. Targeted control work at Argaty and neighbouring estates has ensured that grey squirrel numbers in the area have been kept sufficiently low enough to allow red squirrels to repopulate… […]
…our survey sites are beautiful areas of woodland that are very rarely visited; unspoilt and full of things to see. I’ve walked through clouds of butterflies on a site near Dumfries, I’ve had close encounters with deer and of course I’ve seen red squirrels (and grey ones too!) You can do your survey visits at any time, so you can… […]
…to have these boxes passed onto your local network or returned to SSRS for future use. We will contact you individually to organise the transfer. If your boxes are on private land, please ensure that the landowner is aware that you are on site to retrieve the boxes. If you have any concerns, please get in touch. Please complete your… […]
