Once upon a time, Scotland was amongst the most biodiverse regions of Europe. However, over the last few centuries, Scotland, like the rest of the United Kingdom, lost most of its biodiversity. Megafauna, such as the European bison, brown bear, gray wolf, and European beavers, were all hunted to extinction. Moreover, the Scottish Highlands have also experienced rampant habitat degradation and loss due to agricultural expansion and urbanization. With a lack of large predators, herbivores, many of which have been introduced, have proliferated across the United Kingdom to unsustainable populations, further exacerbating habitat degradation.
However, there is still hope for Scotland’s wilderness. Over the last half-century, various reintroduction projects have proven to have found success, not only in Scotland but across the UK. This includes the reintroduction of red kites and white-tailed eagles in the late 20th century. More recently, beavers have made a strong comeback to the region.
In this episode, I interview Peter Cairns, who is the Executive Director of SCOTLAND: The Big Picture. We talk about their valiant efforts to reintroduce the Eurasian Lynx to the Scottish Highlands. We also discuss the possibility of wolves and bears making a return to the country. We also talk in-depth about the organization’s projects, including the Carignoms Cranes and Painting Scotland Yellow campaigns.
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Episode 47: Rewilding Scotland with Peter Cairns, Executive Director, SCOTLAND: The Big Picture