There is great news for Scottish Wildcats; new Scottish Wildcat kittens have been born.
The kittens were born in the Highland Wildlife Park.
The park is located in the highlands of Scotland.
The Highland Wildlife Park has Scottish Wildcats within its park. It is a park which is dedicated to saving these beautiful cats. The news of these kittens being born shows that their work in trying to save the Scottish Wildcat is paying off.
How Many Kittens Were Born?
There were four adorable new Scottish Wildcat kittens born in the Highland Wildlife Park.
Why Is This Good News?
It is great news for the Scottish Wildcats because Scottish Wildcats are critically endangered today. The population of Scottish Wildcats is very low today; their population is thought to be as low as 30 cats.
Why Is The Scottish Wildcat Population So Low?
Scottish Wildcats were once found throughout the British Isles. They were found throughout Scotland, England and Wales.
In England and Wales, the Wildcats went extinct during the Victorian era. In Scotland, the Wildcats were mostly extinct by the early 20th century and nearly extinct by around 1919.
Scottish Wildcats are only found in the Scottish Highlands. They are not present everywhere in the Scottish highlands, these beautiful cats are now only found in pockets of the Scottish highlands, as their population is so low.
One of the biggest reasons for the cats almost becoming extinct in the UK, was because they were hunted to extinction in most parts of the UK.
These beautiful animals also nearly went extinct because their forest home was destroyed. The destruction of their habitat also pushed Scottish Wildcats to the edge of extinction by the early 20th century.
Scottish Wildcats Threatened Today
The destruction of their forest home is also a threat to Scottish Wildcats today. The Scottish government has been causing deforestation in the Clashindarroch forest in the Scottish Highlands.
The Clashindarroch forest is thought to be home to the biggest population of wildcats. This forest is believed about a third of Scottish Wildcats living within it. This means that the Clashindarroch forest is crucial to preserving Scottish Wildcats.
We must save their forest home to save the Scottish Wildcat; instead of destroying it. Destroying the Scottish Wildcats home through deforestation puts these cats in danger of becoming extinct.
Amur Leopard shows that there is hope for critically endangered animals. Amur Leopards are still critically endangered today. But their population has been growing over recent years thanks to successful conservation work.
Thanks to wildlife conservation, Amur Leopards have seen their population size more than double. Amur Leopards had a similar population a few years ago, to the Scottish Wildcat population today. Only 30 Amur Leopard remained by 2003, now their populations are around 100 individual Amur Leopards remain in the wild today.
If the Amur Leopard population can double in a few years thanks to conservation work, then the Scottish Wildcat population can also do the same.
A New Hope
The birth of these four new kittens gives this critically endangered animal new hope.
It gives new hope for the species.
It gives the Scottish Wildcat a brighter future.
The names of these four new kittens are - Vaara, Druim, Eilein and Strom.
Happy Thursday!
If you want to help save Scottish Wildcats, please sign this petition.
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