Wildcats In England
It has long been held that wildcats have been extinct in England since the early 20th Century. Is this REALLY the case, however? The orthodox view is that only the only wildcats living in the British countryside are the very rare so-called Scottish wildcats. Could it be the case that wildcats never actually became extinct in England but have been living in certain places undisturbed and remain here today? My good friend, the naturalist Jonathan McGowan thinks so, and actually found a dead wildcat kitten by a road in Cranborne Chase some years ago. and stuffed it, as he is also a taxidermist!
Wildcat - Photo Copyright Jonathan McGowan
'The mounted cat shown above (now in a glass case), which I found dead by a road in Cranborne Chase, is what I believe to be Felis sylvestris, the European wildcat (There is no such species as a Scottish wildcat). I believe relict populations survive in at least three areas of Southern England. Some may say that there cannot be any wildcats in that area as they all went extinct and would have been diluted by feral cats!
The last records of this species from southern England were during the nineteen twenties, by hunters and ferreters. They were often bolted from rabbit burrows into nets by ferrets or terriers. There were still reports of wildcats from the 1960s from Cranborne chase in North East Dorset however. This is where this specimen came from, as road kill about fifteen years ago. The cat was a kitten of only ten to twelve weeks old, yet was too big to be a domestic cat. Its short tail has only six rings, thick even for a wildcat kitten, as their tails taper before they thicken out after a few months later. The kitten was still with its mother most likely, as the gut contained parts of different species, yet no whole large prey except shrews, but a rat's tail and parts of blackbird and thrush were present.
The cat was thick bodied with long thick legs, large head with ears spaced well apart towards the sides, black feet undersides, and pale lower legs with diagonal stripes along sides of upper legs and front. It had a wavy dorsal line that faded towards the tail base. The fur was very dense, much more so than even a feral domestic cat, and had sandy coloured under fur. The teeth had only just started to erupt from jaw. It may or may not be a 100% pure wildcat but no normal feral domestic would have all of these traits. There are not many feral domestic cats in Dorset.
I have, since finding this road killed cat, seen at least twice other specimens and have tracked them in snow on the higher downs. They also are present on the heathlands in two areas and those cats look like hybrids.
Wildcats also live on Dartmoor and Exmoor. A Devon-based taxidermist found what he believed were three dead wildcats by roads and one was found north of Plymouth. He sent me the photographs and I confirmed that they did indeed look like wildcats. Another taxidermist from Exmoor caught two wildcats on a trail camera and found a dead one by a road in Exmoor National Park. A wildlife enthusiast from Dorset also photographed two wildcats in Dorset.
It is a shame the authorities have not considered this issue rather than concentrating on Scotland. We have a dwindling population of true wildcats in England and they urgently need help!
Below is a photo of the road-killed wildcat that I found in Cranborne Chase, alongside a road-killed pheasant and hare.
Jonathan McGowan
The last records of this species from southern England were during the nineteen twenties, by hunters and ferreters. They were often bolted from rabbit burrows into nets by ferrets or terriers. There were still reports of wildcats from the 1960s from Cranborne chase in North East Dorset however. This is where this specimen came from, as road kill about fifteen years ago. The cat was a kitten of only ten to twelve weeks old, yet was too big to be a domestic cat. Its short tail has only six rings, thick even for a wildcat kitten, as their tails taper before they thicken out after a few months later. The kitten was still with its mother most likely, as the gut contained parts of different species, yet no whole large prey except shrews, but a rat's tail and parts of blackbird and thrush were present.
The cat was thick bodied with long thick legs, large head with ears spaced well apart towards the sides, black feet undersides, and pale lower legs with diagonal stripes along sides of upper legs and front. It had a wavy dorsal line that faded towards the tail base. The fur was very dense, much more so than even a feral domestic cat, and had sandy coloured under fur. The teeth had only just started to erupt from jaw. It may or may not be a 100% pure wildcat but no normal feral domestic would have all of these traits. There are not many feral domestic cats in Dorset.
I have, since finding this road killed cat, seen at least twice other specimens and have tracked them in snow on the higher downs. They also are present on the heathlands in two areas and those cats look like hybrids.
Wildcats also live on Dartmoor and Exmoor. A Devon-based taxidermist found what he believed were three dead wildcats by roads and one was found north of Plymouth. He sent me the photographs and I confirmed that they did indeed look like wildcats. Another taxidermist from Exmoor caught two wildcats on a trail camera and found a dead one by a road in Exmoor National Park. A wildlife enthusiast from Dorset also photographed two wildcats in Dorset.
It is a shame the authorities have not considered this issue rather than concentrating on Scotland. We have a dwindling population of true wildcats in England and they urgently need help!
Below is a photo of the road-killed wildcat that I found in Cranborne Chase, alongside a road-killed pheasant and hare.
Jonathan McGowan
Pheasant, Wildcat And Hare - Photo Copyright Jonathan McGowan
How interesting Jonathan's account is! Knowing how elusive these wildcats are and knowing that we have a healthy breeding population of black leopards, pumas and lynxes, all of which are not thought to be here officially, I find it entirely believable and plausible that wildcats have been hiding away in certain areas of England virtually in secret! They DO need our help however! It's encouraging to know that there are plans being considered to 'reintroduce' wildcats to England in certain areas. Such a plan would surely help the ones that are already, it seems, still living in the wild in England!
To see the Rewilding Britain Website - please click on the photo below.
Kendra', with one of her kittens. Photographed at the British Wildlife Centre, Newchapel, Surrey.
Peter Trimming - Scottish wildcats
