THE demise of the Scottish wildcat can, like many other native predators, be placed firmly at the door of the Scottish shooting estates whose relentless persecution has driven them to the point where they are now rarer than endangered tigers in India ("The last hope", Herald Magazine, July 14).
In recent years this decline has been aided and hastened by the appalling legislation introduced by the SNP Government following its approval of the use of indiscriminate snares.
Wildcats are powerful animals and any caught in gamekeepers' snares would normally be shot since handling them would be dangerous, and they would certainly never be released alive.
The Scottish Government has a dreadful track record in the protection of wildlife and wild areas in Scotland. The Scottish wildcat could well be the first mammal to become extinct under the watch of the present Government and its poorly-advised and unscientific legislation.
Bernard Zonfrillo,
28 Brodie Road,
Glasgow.
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