The trust would like to lynx in Scotland within five years. Photo: Elchhaus CC-BY-SA-3.0
A conservation charity wants to see the lynx reintroduced to the UK and, if this is successful, wolves should also be released into the wild, it said.
The John Muir Trust, named after the Scots-born advocate of national parks, said it supports the immediate reintroduction of beavers, after a limited five-year trial.
The charity released its policy on ‘rewilding’ parts of the country, which it supports.
The trust is urging the Scottish Government to welcome the return of the Eurasian beaver as a native species and allow further reintroductions across Scotland. The Scottish environment minister will later this year announce the government’s response to the five-year beaver trial at Knapdale.
Chief executive Stuart Brooks said: “We would like to see large parts of Britain set aside for what has become known as rewilding, which means repairing damaged ecosystems, restoring natural processes and reintroducing lost species, including the beaver to create a richer, wilder environment.”
The charity said it supports a trial introduction of the lynx into Scotland should begin within five years. If this is successful, the country should consider releasing wolves into remote areas. It admits, however, that the prospect of reintroducing bears is unlikely.
The JMT said it believes that such a visionary approach would benefit not just nature, but also people and communities, especially in remote areas. Rewilding pockets of towns and cities could also play a role in bringing nature into more of people’s lives, it added.
“The Trust has taken a rewilding approach to the management of its properties for 30 years, long before the term was coined,” Mr Brooks said. “Rewilding is about intervening to repair damage and restart natural processes, for example, by managing deer to allow native woodlands to regenerate; or by re-introducing missing species, such as beavers, that perform key functions in our ecosystems. That in turn will ultimately allow nature to take its own course and be more resilient in the face of climate change.
“It is not about excluding people, imposing unwanted policies on rural communities or damaging peoples’ livelihoods. We recognise that rewilding is not suitable everywhere, for example, in areas of high agricultural value.
“But for other areas it can provide the step-change we need to bring back the full diversity of our natural heritage. Much of our land is impoverished – for humans and wildlife – and we believe that returning nature in these areas to its former glory would benefit everyone.
“Our hills, rivers and seas should be teeming with wildlife that people will want to see and experience. By bringing visitors from all over the world, some of our most fragile communities in our most remote areas could start to thrive once again, as is happening in other parts of Europe where nature has been encouraged to flourish.”
The trust said it believes the Scottish Beaver trial should be followed up with further licensed introductions of the animals across Scotland and other parts of the UK. In time, and with public consultation and support, the Trust hopes to see credible proposals brought forward in the future for trial reintroductions of carnivores, starting with the lynx.
In 2010, controversial plans to reintroduce wolves and lynx to the Alladale estate in northern Scotland were withdrawn.
A trust owned by the family of one-time MFI furniture-chain heir Paul Lister wanted to fence off a large area near Ardgay on the Easter Ross-Sutherland boundary to house three wolves. Outdoor groups, including the Mountaineering Council of Scotland, objected because it would have conflicted with the country’s right-to-roam laws.
The John Muir Trust owns several mountain estates in Scotland, including most of the summit of Ben Nevis.
MountainMike
11 April 2015Having experienced wild cats first hand and knowing how shy they are I fully endorse this idea of bringing back an even more cautious cat, but we also need to bring back a natural predator that will kill off sick deer that stalkers do not see. Stalkers creep up upon a grazing herd and have no idea which are the ill animals that should be killed as they all run off after about 4 seconds when the gunshot reaches them.
JohnM
13 April 2015Many will look at what has happened to the Scottish wild cat in recent generations and question whether that should be fixed first before the lynx is reintroduced. A few conservationists have done outstanding work with the native wild cat but it faces overwhelming odds due primarily these days to interbreeding with feral pets – hybridisation – and only something between 35 and 100 animals remain. Surely the house needs putting in order first?
OutdoorsAndy
14 April 2015Agree with you both-
Ray Mears recently said at a talk I attended, when asked about the beavers- "if we can't allow our existing species to thrive, then why are we looking to introduce others. We should stabilize what we have first".
However, there is an argument for a more complete ecosystem to allow a healthier species base.
We need more robust sentences for wildlife crime and much more protection for our “wild land”.
A good start would be a tree/forest protection register. Sadly these things tend to degenerate into giving money to land owners for shooting things.
However, the Lynx is already here, but is small numbers. I think it will spread too.
MountainMike
14 April 2015Great responses.
How many times have I come across in UK mountains above 1000ft a rotting deer carcass in Scotland comparable to a sheep carcass in England, when in a proper natural world it should have just been bone within a week? The meat is sometimes so dry (not rotting) it can be cooked. I have seen this for decades. There is clearly something amiss in our human centric eco systems that I hope the biodiversity elite will now grasp. We do need nature to show the way, but that will only be achieved by education.
A reintroduction of Lynx will get the public thinking and if OutdoorsAndy is right, than salvation is in sight.
James F
15 April 2015Having moved to the Alps, where there is a pack of 9-10 wolves in the valley, I wouldn't recommend introducing them as a way to revitalise fragile and rural areas. Visitors may want to see wolves, but for each wolf, there are a whole load ( citation needed!) of Mouflon, Deer, Wild Boar, Chamoix, Ibex etc they also want to see.
Even living in wolf country, where I'm trying to make the vegetable garden deer-proof, I've never seen a wolf, although I see wolf droppings ( Dog like, goes silver, full of fur) or prints most days. All the locals say the number of large herbivores has fallen significantly since the wolves spread back to the area, farmers repor far more livestock losses, and many dogs have been killed.
There may be valid arguements for introducing these predators, but the economic one is not one!
Beth Roberts
16 April 2015Would certainly add an element of jeopardy to wild camping!!!!
Like my O/H always says though, "if you're being chased by a wolf/bear/scary predator, you don't have to be fast, just faster than whoever you're with.....!!" :-)
MountainMike
21 April 2015The Lynx is quite a unique cat as it is so cautious of humans (more so that the British Wildcat), but is a natural predator of small deer. There has never been a report of a Lynx attacking a human, so wild campers need not worry (I don't).
Beth Roberts
22 April 2015That's good to know.
What about the wolves and bears? ;-)
Don
23 April 2015The UK has lost all ability to co-exist with nature. The 'forested areas' that are apparently being considered for lynx re-introduction in England (Kielder and Thetford) are so artificial and lacking in diversity that I just don't see the point. Plantations of non native trees for timber use are not a suitable habitat for much wildlife at all.
Introducing the lynx into areas of Scotland would require a huge amount of native forest regeneration/replanting (which is happening, albeit at a slow rate). The far northern areas of Sutherland could be suitable as they are relatively un-populated, but again would need to be densely re-forested before considering a successful re-introduction.
Much as I would love to see Eurasian Lynx where they belong, it seems to me that we have ruined this country in terms of it's ecosystems, and perhaps we should just focus on repairing and expanding the forests and species that we have left.
Mike Gibson
28 April 2015The Lynx is not necessarily a woodland cat, but does enjoy higher altitudes and as its fur pattern suggests it is a creature of less dense woodland. I would not be so keen on wolves, although they too tend to keep clear of the top biped predator. Bears similarly, but when hungry can sniff a chocolate bar at a long distance and are so heavy can open a car like a tin can. They would simply move to urban areas as the smell must attract them. As a child, 50 years ago, I watched Pine Martins in Borrowdale, but they are no longer there, so I welcome any reintroduction with proactive protection of any of our historical native species.
A. Roturier
20 May 2019Yes please, never mind the lynx, they are thriving in other areas. Worry about the wildcat which exists nowhere else but Scotland. With only 115 in the wild and 80 in zoos their plight is much worse surely?
The experts are saying they might have only two more years, if even that. And I have spoken to people from Scotland who were completely unaware there was any sort of problem at all. With numbers like the above it looks to me as though this fight is already over short of the graveside service.