Press Release
BORDER PATROLS HOPE TO REPEL GREY SQUIRREL INVADERS
7 September 2009
The Crown Estate recently joined twenty-five other landowners in a partnership project funded through the Scottish Rural Development Programme (SRDP) to trap grey squirrels throughout south west Scotland and the Borders region.
Grey squirrels spreading north from England carry the squirrel pox virus, harmless to the greys but deadly to Scotland’s native red squirrel. Once infected, reds can die within two weeks, and the virus can spread quickly through a population with devastating effect.
Our 7,000 hectare Applegirth estate is situated in the heart of the Annan valley between Lockerbie and Beattock. Its associated woodlands are strategically placed to help the control effort, involving input from both large and small rural holdings.
The Crown Estate’s Forestry Manager, Mike Libera said: “This has been a very worthwhile project, as we have not only been able to trap the grey squirrels that were present on the estate, but by spreading the humane cage traps widely around the woodlands we have also been able to build up a picture of the distribution and health of the native red squirrels in the area due to incidental captures.
“Any captured red squirrels were visually checked while in the cage for signs of disease before being released back into the woodland, where they would often sit up in the branches of trees chattering away and chastising the trapper!
“Grey squirrels like to travel along river corridors where there is a good and variable food supply, and the Annan Valley is a perfect place to intercept them. This area has been identified in the red squirrel action plan as an important control zone, and The Crown Estate is happy to support the project,” he added.
Greys are now trapped and killed across southern Scotland and northern England , and it is important to maintain this strategy, especially as there are fears for the future of red squirrels after a number of cases of squirrel pox were discovered in the region.
Stephanie Johnstone, Project Officer for Red Squirrels in South Scotland co-ordinated the partnership project in the Annan Valley. She said: “Following outbreaks of squirrel pox at Lockerbie and Drumlanrig, it was important to include local landowners in a defence strategy against the greys.
“The landowners of the Annan Valley, along with many others throughout south Scotland, have stepped up to the challenge and are working together to protect our red squirrels from the grey squirrel incursion and the deadly squirrel pox virus.”
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