Wolf reintroduction in the UK.

[Beowulf]

where do you stop when it comes to introducing extinct species. 15 million years ago the UK was still apart of the european land mass and animals such as lynx, bear dogs and giant sloths roamed around quite freely! Worst of all was a creature called a 'Muntjac'! nasty creature, it had big teeth and pointy bits on its head! I hope they don't re-introduce them!

 

[poddle]

Thanks AndyL. Yes you are right, International Beaver can be very good, especially the Scandinavian type.


Correct Sika, The Scandi type is not so HAIRY as the German type, I studied this subject thoroughly whilst working in the Greek islands for ten years.

It's Czech cousin however is a cute pert little animal,slightly blonde tinge, and well trimmed. Altogether a far more pleaant Beaver. It also has a very interesting mating procedure, generalt brought on by chicken and potatoes, and a large bottle of village wine

 

[sikamalc]

Bloody hell Poddle it alway cost me a lot more than a bottle of plonk and chicken with potatoes to trap Beaver.

 

[JAYB]

With regard to the wolves being released on Alladale estate, I know for a fact that there is not room to keep them there in a confined environment. When the initial survey of the estate was done, apparently there would have been enough room to keep one wolf!
It is now thick with snow up there and we have had some extremely high winds which would, exactly as Malcolm pointed out, provided very nice exit ramps against any fences that were meant to contain them.

I can't see it happening unless they acquire more land.

Malcolm, last I heard David was still out West.

John

 

[sikamalc]

Hi JAYB. First of all thanks for the loan of all that money I promise to pay you back one day

On a more serious note, Alladale was always to me a none starter for releasing Wolves, after all the first thing Mr Lister did was reduce the deer numbers dramatically, and pray for the trees to return

A very good friend of mine was asked to guide on there this season, it would seem that the resident stalker was at a loss for another experianced guide. He ended up taking out a load of Ukranian scrap metal merchants. Looooovellly people

The stalkers are now called Rangers, its a far cry from what it used to be, I believe its around £20,000 for a week

Perhaps the shop in Ardgay will reap massive profits

Got to go now I am making myself laugh to much.

 

[paul k]

I'm very much with Sikamalc on this one and have no problem with beavers or wild boar but a top predator is a different thing altogether. The European Elk is an interesting option but these are a forest animal and the options are limited in many parts of Scotland.

Much as it would be a romantic idea to have packs of wolves roaming the Highlands and helping to control the deer it is never going to happen.

I believe that the whole point is to reintroduce them to the wild as opposed to behind the wire of an enclosure. That being the case a wild pack would need a huge territory and this will need the co-operation of a number of landowners, they would undoubtedly kill a number of domestic animals, being easier to catch than deer, the public would be very afraid and you'd get all the mostly unfounded stories of people being attacked by wolves even though there are very few if any recorded human kills.

Ecotourism agruements are hard to sustain as finding your pack in that immense area would be difficult so what are the tourists going to see?

Perhaps more relevant is that to justify it on the grounds of re-introducing a once indigenous species the wolves used would have to be Northern European wolves, probably from Finland, Poland or the Baltic States and there are very few wild populations that could spare any animals for use in Scotland.

I also find it somewhat unbelieveable that a country that was the first to ban the hunting of mammals with hounds, supposedly on the grounds of cruelty, could propose introducing an animal that hunts in the same way. To a deer the fact that the wolf is wild and the hound is not is a very small and irrelevant distinction, either way it is hunted to exhaustion and then killed.

It isn't going to happen as it is totally impractical - the only predator that might be suitable for reintroduction might be the European Lynx and who knows...... they might be here already!

 

[Beowulf]

I must say that to have a country filled with all the beasts we would have had a thousand years ago would be great. But we can't even control the animals we have introduced! As a child i enjoyed going down to the canal and fishing for gudgeon. Nowadays there are no gudgeon, the zander has eaten them all! As for grey squirrels! These great British beasts will I'm afraid have to join the likes of Dragons and Unicorns 'mythical'. Ho well when man has finished with the planet maybe it will set its self right and without man's intervention these animals will thrive again.

 

[MJ75]

Drew, is David Alinson still the stalker on Letterewe?

MJ75 I would not swear to it but I think the Elk that Mr Lister has are the North American Elk (not Moose) if this is the case, it makes rather a mockery of introducing extinct species as they were never here in the first place. He has also had a scorched earth policy on Sika deer on the estate, and wants rid of them in the whole area No chance of that I am afraid, in over 100 years the FC and other bodies have never managed it, besides which the surrounding estates have got plenty of them, including my place.

One does not hear to much information these days coming from the estate, as those that work there have been told to keep to themselves about everything that goes on. Great shame really as it used to be one of the premier stalking estates in the area, taking I believe 100 stags and 300 hinds. Not anymore!!

Sikamalc, thanks for your replies (And everybody else). I confess although I'd love to see them back I accept that it's highly unlikely to say the least.

I'm very much in favour of seeing beaver back in the UK also. Though I really think the replanting of native forests should take priority to ensure the species we do have left will continue to exist.

All the best
Jared

 

[MIDan]

In the state that I live here in America (Michigan) there is a growing population of wolves. The area required for a pack of wolves in this geographic region is around 100 square miles. This is a heavily forested biome with lots of deer and other prey species available. I would expect that the highland areas of Scotland would be similar, although my understanding is that there is not as much forest cover there, as it is fairly open country. This might lead to even higher land requirements by the wolves.

Even though the wolves have done pretty well in the last few years there have been some problems. Wolves usually can’t stand the presence of dogs and will kill them given the chance, and usually eat them. This has not made the wolves the favorites of hunters who use dogs to pursue game in those areas. The attitude here is generally one of tolerance, although the human population density of the Upper Peninsula and the rest of the Northern Great Lakes region is less then in Scotland, generally. If the human population were higher I tend to think that the presence of the wolves would not be tolerated by the general public. All of the tasty domestic sheep there in Scotland would be a particular problem, as many of you have pointed out.

 

[poddle]

Bloody hell Poddle it alway cost me a lot more than a bottle of plonk and chicken with potatoes to trap Beaver.

Try taking a guitar with you Sika, works everytime 8)

 

[Andy L]

All you need is a BIC razor and a can of special brew and you can enjoy the beaver in Germany as muchas you want!!

 

[sikamalc]

Poddle said try taking a guitar with me, works everytime. Well I have heard of beating them off with a shitty stick, but a guitar thats a bit drastic

If I tried to serenade any women with a guitar I would be wearing it mate

I think i will stick to trapping mine the conventional way

 

[poddle]

Never mind Sikamate. I am sure that you have devised a cunning plan to ensure a steady flow of beaver to your "hunting place"