Restoring Key Species to Britain

Issues, examples and lessons

Roy Dennis MBEHighland Foundation for Wildlife

Reintroducing key mammals

• Workshop at the right time

• Suddenly there’s more interest

• Probably best time for 30 years

• Now the time to press ahead – cos the pendulum always swings back sometime

• My view is key species are essential for functioning ecosystem.

Reminder how bad the loss is!Lost from Scotland since last Ice Age:

Auroch (wild cattle), Moose (Elk), Reindeer,

Wild boar and Beaver

Lynx, Wolf and Brown Bear

These are really influential animals in the functioning of ecosystems.

Their absence is detrimental to nature

conservation and management in the UK

What to do about it?

• Reintroduction – big mammals not going to get back naturally like some birds, bats or insects

• EU Directive encourages member states to examine the potential for restoring lost species

• But many feel that we should do these things ourselves to make up for past mistakes and to restore nature.

Bird Reintroductions – more pro-active

Capercaillie – 19th century

White-tailed eagle – 1959, 1968, 1975 onwards

Red Kite 1989 to Scotland and England

Goshawk – by the back door from 1960s

Osprey to central England from 1996

More recently translocations of

Golden Eagle to Ireland

Corncrake to England

And other species in people’s minds such as common crane and white storkWhat can we learn?

Old breeding sites of Sea Eagles

Isle of Skye Scotland

Middle Ages – widespread then intense persecution.

1800 - about 20 pairs left in Scotland

1916 - last pair nested in Inverness-shire

Early reintroductions: 1959 – 3 birds Argyll 1968 – 4 young Fair Isle.

1968 - imported four young sea eaglesfrom Norway; two of each sex.

Died or dispersed

Too few, wrong placeStopped from getting more

Rum National Nature Reserve NCC

1975 – 85 92 young from Norway

Reared and released from hacking cages

Resulted in first breeding 1983

First young in wild 1985

First wild young bred in 1995

Still not 10 young per year in wild by 1997

56 more imported 1993 -1998

100 young reared by 2000 and 22 pairs on territory

30 young from 36 pairs in 2006

Total young reared 222

Sea Eagle Reintroduction

It took a long time and was not easy. Project stopped in 1969

Restarted because strong push from Ian Newton and Morton Boyd

Population on west coast Scotland secure but food supplies problematic

Breeding range far too restricted

Proposals to restore them in eastern Scotland for last 15 years – delays

Now proposals and discussions for East Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland

Techniques all work well - but ever increasing bureaucratic hurdles

Use big starter populations – choose areas of richest habitat and food supplies

Exterminated in Scotland end 19th century;

re-introduced from Sweden 1989 to 1993;

now re-established and spreading

Chose most ecological productive area for project

Chose long term project progression

Linked to joint project with England

93 young from Sweden 1989-1993

First breeding 1992

More releases:

in late 1990’s Central Scotland

early 2000’s South-west Scotland

4 sites in England using Spanish kites

RAF support and lots of publicity

Success of Red Kites

• Moving programme of releases

• Partnership teams of RSPB, English Nature, Scottish Natural Heritage, and ornithologists,landowners and managers

• Lots of birds released

• Great publicity and success

• Kites in general countryside not in special reserves – so close to people

Now to the really important players in ecosystems – the lost mammals

The Auroch is lost for ever

Our dominant mammal is now red deer

But wouldn’t it be great to have a few herds of ‘wild’ Highland cattle

The ecological value of big herbivores is more and more understood.

Lots of new projects and thinking but we need far more

Ecological functioning

Future:

Increase in cattle for conservation

wild ‘feral’ herds of native cattle

Or will we be prevented because of ‘health & safety controls’

Heck cattle in Netherlands

Beavers are keystone species with very important role in ecosystem health

They are essential in nature – just like oil in a car engine!

Important ecological effects nearly all beneficial

Water flows, sedimentation

Ameliorating floods

Habitat manipulation

Habitat creation - ponds

Invertebrates

Fish

Plants

Mammals

Amphibians

Birds

But how long do we have to keep repeating it!!!

Is there available habitat in UK?– we have hundreds and hundreds of suitable places!

Moose: exterminated about 900 years? ago – increased in last 40 years in Europe.

How do we keep forest ponds open or kill trees for woodpeckers

Wild Boar

Exterminated long ago by hunting and incorporation into domestic free-ranging pigs.

Since 1988 storms, escapes free living from ‘wild boar farms’

Lynx & roe deer

and ancient trees

Provider of carrion – we need top predators

Lynx – most suitable candidate after beaver.

We need return of large predators toInfluence middle range predators suchas badger, otter, fox and marten

Wolf

Last to survive

Last killed in Scotland in 1743

Lots of culture and history.

Lots of antagonism! But….

there is room and lots of prey

Important effects on red deer – not only kill some but move the others around – good for regeneration

Importance of telling stories

Greenland polar wolves

Bears : there are problems but people in Europe live with them

And why should the poorer countries of Europe have the big mammals not us

Zarnesti Study Area – Romania

13000 hectares

Gamekeeper Mosu

Compared to Scotland

Red deer 105 1000

Roe deer 120 350+

Boar 160-180 0

Brown Bear 43 0

Wolf 5-7 0

Lynx 6 0

Red fox, badger, wildcat, pine marten and otter.

Austria

Bear

Project

Is it possible?

12 years ago two experts from Bavaria & Romania visited the Highlands – definitely suitable habitat for all lost species

The issue is social and political

not ecological

But now rapidly changing attitudes

changes in agriculture with

rural management and ecotourism opportunities.

I think it is possible.

Difficulties from Conservation Colleagues and Bodies

Reintroductions are expensive and/or unnecessary

Rare birds are sexy and special feature of area or reserve – so regional staff don’t want them common elsewhere

Not enough habitat

Make it too complicated – excessive time and money spent on feasibility studies

Too much time on special issues such as genetic pools

Too few staff in important positions know the species in the wild

Scared of it going wrong rather than excited at it succeeding

Putting off decisions until next year – then a new problem

Society and political issues

People can be scared of big changes and big animals

Difficult to get politicians to take bold decisions especially when advised by civil servants

Excessive influence of farmers, land-owners, fishermen as opposed to ‘ordinary’ citizens

Countryside side changing and ecotourism now very important in rural areas – many of these animals have high economic values

Must have sound and robust management action

Scared to have big mammals in UK but happy to sponsor tigers in India or lions in Africa

UK a rich country and needs to do much more for ecosystem restoration

You need to get on and do it

• Learn as much as possible about the species• Get to know species in the wild• Be sensible and sensitive• Tell interesting stories• Don’t give up - keep pushing• Today’s impossibility is tomorrow’s project• Emphasise ecological values • Always ask for greater areas of nature and more

resources for in-field wildlife management