REWILDING STORIES
Informative and inspiring stories that catalyse Big Picture thinking.
Carnivore Country?
Slovenia now boasts some of the highest densities of brown bears in the world, while wolf numbers are recovering and lynx have been successfully reintroduced. But this success has been hard won, reflecting a deliberate and sustained focus on maintaining a healthy balance between nature conservation and the needs of human communities.
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What’s a sheep worth?
Sheep have come to dominate the Scottish landscape, but at what cost? We could produce all the lamb we need while also supporting farmers to restore our lost biodiversity, but if farmers insist they cannot coexist with native species, it’s surely time to ask: what are sheep really worth, and do we need so many?
Part of our ‘The Big Picture in Focus’ series, providing a deep dive into the stories that impact Scotland’s road to nature recovery.
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The Lynx Binding Life And Death
In the absence of apex predators in Scotland, key ecological interactions, such as carcass scavenging, are either absent or significantly suppressed. A steady supply of dead deer, partially eaten by lynx, would increase the year-round availability of carrion – a resource that, ironically, supports so much life.
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The Trouble With Reintroductions
Opinions on the return of missing species vary widely, but in the face of increasing biodiversity loss and calls for a wildlife comeback, should the question around reintroductions be shifting from ‘whether’ to ‘when’?
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Lynx With Slovenian Hunters
In Slovenia, hunters are helping conservationists to reinforce a critically threatened lynx population, recognising the lynx has a vital role to play in a healthy forest ecosystem.
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Could We Live With Lynx?
Many generations have passed since the shy, beautiful, and charismatic lynx roamed the wild forests of Scotland. Today, the possibility of reintroducing this native predator is a tantalising prospect for some but for others, represents an unwelcome imposition.
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Lynx To The Past
While ancient DNA may not yet allow the cloning of woolly mammoths, it can help inform the return of species that lived in Scotland more recently.
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Where Predators Rule
With global nature loss inextricably linked with climate breakdown, the place for top predators in a future Scotland, is an increasingly pressing discussion. Gordon Eaglesham explores the complex and evolving science around the foundational role of large carnivores in living systems around the world.
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