Resources
Here you’ll find all the information and support you need to volunteer with Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels. We’ll be adding more content as the project progresses.
The survey takes place between March and April and is carried out in 2km squares of woodland called ‘tetrads’. Each tetrad contains four feeder boxes filled with bait — usually a mix of peanuts, sunflower seeds and whole maize. On the underside of the lid we place a small sticky tab. When a squirrel opens the lid to access the food, the sticky surface will pick up a few of its hairs.
Volunteers must visit each feeder box in their tetrad four times during the survey period. They’ll refill the box with fresh bait, collect the hair sample and replace the sticky tab. It’s pretty straightforward! The hair samples are then returned to Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels for analysis.
How-to videos
Downloads
Spring Survey protocol – North East
Spring Survey protocol – Tayside
Spring Survey protocol – Argyll, the Trossachs and Stirling
Spring Survey protocol – South