Artificial pine marten dens are being installed in forests along the east coast of Scotland and the A9 corridor to try to halt the worrying advance of grey squirrels.
Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) plans to install over 30 pine marten dens along the grey squirrel migration routes in a bid to protect red squirrels.
Last year greys were recorded in Pitlochry, other parts of Perthshire and north of the River North Esk and now they are being found north of Dunkeld and moving north from Angus into Aberdeenshire for the very first time.
FLS fears the central belt population will one day link up with the established Aberdeenshire population found around Aberdeen and endanger local red populations and is moving to try and stop this from happening.
Gareth Ventress, environment forester at FLS, explained: “We need to stop grey squirrels in their tracks.
“Grey squirrels from the central belt can bring squirrelpox with them, which is what decimates reds alongside competition for food. Grey squirrels in Aberdeenshire don’t currently carry squirrelpox.
“We plan to install artificial pine marten boxes along the grey squirrel migration route, particularly in forests like Craigvinean in Perthshire or Inglismaldie just north of the River North Esk along the A90.”
Research has shown that the presence of pine martens helps control grey squirrel numbers although the exact process of how they control numbers is not fully understood.
In north Scotland, red squirrels have coexisted with pine martens since the early 1980s in large areas of native species and mixed plantations.
FLS believes installing artificial dens along the A9 will support pine marten populations in the areas where grey squirrels are advancing.
Gareth continued: “We’re not introducing pine martens to these areas, they’re already there. The artificial dens provide safe and secure natal sites and help improve the winter survival of kits, which are baby pine martens. That increases their local density.
“The dens are installed around four or five metres off the ground. They’re basically wooden boxes with roofs to keep the rain and wind out, and we put wood shavings inside them to make them cosy.
“Pine martens are slow breeders. Plantation forests, where the trees are relatively young, do not offer an abundance of the safe, warm and dry tree cavities that the martens prefer to den in. Therefore artificial dens can help improve breeding success locally.”
Gareth said even with the addition of pine marten boxes to help stop the advance of the greys other measures will still be required to stop them from spreading.
“We’ll still have to carry out grey squirrel control, but the presence of the artificial dens should support pine marten numbers and the survival of the reds,” he said.
“Pine martens are funny little things and it’s always exciting to see one. They have such pretty faces, but they also have quite sharp teeth.”
The FLS team has started installing the artificial dens in several forest locations between Dunkeld and Pitlochry along the A9 and from Brechin up to and around Aberdeen along the east coast.
