Highland Recovery
- About Wolves
- British Wolves
- Why Reintroduce
- For & Against
- Why The Highlands
- Timeliness
- How Many Wolves
- Reintro Scheme
The Scottish Highlands have space and food for a wolf population and the wolves can earn their living through a well run wolf ecotourism.
| Web Address www.wolftrust.org.uk Email Address Wolf Trust |
Why The Highlands?
The Highlands of Scotland is the last region where wolves lived before people exterminated the wolf in Britain in the 17th century. Wolves survived longest in the Highlands because of the remote and rugged terrain.
Certain factors make the reintroduction of wolves possible in the Highlands as no where else in Britain (or western Europe). First, there is abundant food and space in the Highlands for wolves. Second, wolves can pay their way through wolf ecotourism. See below.
Abundant Food
700,000 red deer and roe deer live in Scotland (Harris et al 1995). They are the wolf's natural prey. There are more deer in Scotland than in almost any other part of western Europe. So wolves will have plenty of food. See Red Deer & Roe Deer
 |
Red deer stag in velvet. Courtesy Mark Ravnkilde & Deer UK |
Space
The Scottish Highlands are about 25,000km2 in area, ie a third of Scotland and a tenth of Britain. About 200,000 people live there (Scottish Environment Statistics) mainly on the coast. A quarter of the people live in one town, Inverness.
The Highlands are one of the few really big areas in western Europe with a relatively tiny human population (shown on any good atlas of population density). So wolves in the Highlands will be least disturbed by human activity.
References
Harris S, Morris P, Wray S & Yalden D (1995): A review of British mammals. JNCC, Peterborough. 168p.
Scottish Environment Statistics - 1998. The Scottish Office.
 Page revised 9.04 |
