'The trail has gone very cold' - Frustration in the glen a year on from illegal lynx dumping
The community surrounding the site where four lynx were illegally dumped is demanding answers.
A year on from when four lynx were illegally dumped in the Highlands, a community still finds itself in the dark as to how the felines made it there.
Unusual footprints were spotted in the snow by a local in the Kingussie area of the Cairngorms National Park in January last year.
It wasn’t long before pictures were shared of the bobtail cats sitting in the woods not far from the town.
A police investigation opened and a rescue operation took place over several days to bring what turned out to be four tame young cubs to safety. Sadly, one died due to starvation and exposure to harsh snowy conditions at the time.
The surviving three lynx were taken to Edinburgh Zoo by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland who successfully recaptured them before they were rehomed at the Highland Wildlife Park, not far from where they were initially dumped.
Twelve months on, members of the surrounding tight-knit farming and crofting community are demanding more information on the investigation.
John MacPherson, secretary of the Cairngorms Crofters and Farmers Community (CCFC), said: “The trail has gone very cold and that’s not acceptable in this day and age.
“We think the police should have pursued what happened more vigorously. This was an illegal release and police should be doing their job to get a prosecution in place to deter any other similar bodies or people that might be considering illegal release.”
Opposite the site where the lynx were dumped sits the Dell of Killiehuntly, a farm home to cattle and hundreds of sheep who are looked after by the McNiven family.
At the time, the tenant farmers said they were concerned for their sheep with the Labrador-size cats out on the prowl.
While it is said lynx pose no threat to humans and mostly prey on deer, members of the farming community said they could easily go for sheep if hungry.
In Drumguish, a small crofting hamlet surrounded by woodland that backs onto the site where the lynx were released, residents also spoke about concern for their pets.
Mr MacPherson added: “It was a huge event at the time for us here.
“We feel we should at least be updated on how the investigation is going.”
Rewilding groups behind the official reintroduction of the predator to Scotland’s glens said they have been left equally frustrated about how little information has been shared on the investigation one year on.
Richard Bunting, of Trees for Life, one of the charities making up the Lynx to Scotland partnership, said: “A year on from the illegal, wrong and irresponsible release of the lynx in the Cairngorms National Park, it’s hugely frustrating that we still don’t know what’s happened.
“We hope investigations are continuing because it will be beneficial for everyone to have more clarity on what happened to these unfortunate animals which ultimately led to the death of one.
“It was a saga and a sorry case of animal abandonment.
“For the Lynx to Scotland partnership, this tragic story has underlined why any reintroduction of these animals must be properly and carefully managed with habitat assessments, thorough public engagement and government license.”
In a request for more information on the current investigation, a Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Enquiries are ongoing.”
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