Summary 1.The wildcat is considered to be threatened by interbreeding with the domestic cat. As a result of interbreeding the definition of a wildcat in Scotland is contentious. Many authors consider pelage characteristics to be diagnostic, yet few data exist on sympatric cats with different pelages. 2. A study of 31 wild-living cats was conducted from 1995 to 1997 in an area associated with wildcats. Seventy-four per cent of cats caught had striped tabby pelages while 26% had other (non-tabby) phenotypes. 3. On the basis of data from eight nuclear DNA microsatellite loci there was no strong evidence of two groups, and tabby and non-tabby cats did not depart significantly from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. 4. There were significant differences in gene frequencies and genotypes between the two pelage types. Non-tabby cats were also significantly more similar to domestic cats than tabby cats, although still noticeably differentiated from them. 5. There were potential parent-offspring and sibling-sibling relationships between and within tabby and non-tabby cats, suggesting recent interbreeding. On average, however, non-tabby cats were genetically less related to each other than tabby cats. 6. Radio-tracking revealed that non-tabby adult females had significantly larger home ranges than tabby adult females. However, for all other aspects of home range size, social organization, activity patterns and habitat use there were no significant differences between cats of different pelage type. 7. The implications of these results are that traditional approaches for attempting to distinguish wild animals in the face of interbreeding with their domestic forms are neither accurate nor effective. Instead, conservation should focus on mechanisms for dealing with groups of animals below the species level. 8. Specifically for the wildcat in Scotland, conservation should focus on protection by area. If domestic cat controls were conducted within specified areas then the potential threat posed by interbreeding would be reduced.

The indigenous wildcat, Felis silvestris Schreber, 1775, and the introduced domestic cat, F. catus L., have been sympatric in Britain for more than 2000 years. As a result of interbreeding, any distinction between these two forms has become obscured, although a range of morphological criteria (pelage patterns, body measurements, gut lengths, skull morphometrics) and genetic techniques (immunological distances, electrophoresis, DNA hybridization) have been used previously to distinguish between them.A sample of 333 wild-living cats in Scotland was assessed for coloration and markings of pelage, standard body measurements and weights, and (for carcasses only) limb bone lengths, intestine lengths, and skull measurements. These cats were also classi®ed as wildcat, hybrid, or domestic cat according to traditional pelage criteria.Multivariate analyses on these variables, for adult cats, failed to show any clearly distinct groups. When each of the variables was analysed separately, only the distribution of limb bone and intestine length measurements suggested the possibility that two groups might exist. Group 1 cats had short intestines and long limb bones. Group 2 consisted of cats with long intestines and short limb bones. Although the characteristics de®ning cats in Group 1 were similar to those traditionally associated with wildcats, they exhibited a much broader range of pelage and coloration than traditionally described.The groups exhibited a degree of geographical separation. The distribution of Group 1 cats was found to be related to certain environmental variables, namely mean annual temperature and land with poor potential for forestry and agriculture, suggesting that there may be a biological basis for the separation. The implications of these results on the identi®cation and taxonomy of the wildcat are signi®cant. The concept of the wildcat and the domestic cat as separate species can be challenged. The paper highlights the complexity and dif®culties for conventional taxonomy when used as a means for distinguishing between a wild type and its domesticated form where there is interbreeding.

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The European Beaver Castor fiber once occurred throughout Europe, but in many countries was exterminated or greatly reduced by over‐hunting. In the UK, Beavers were last recorded in Scotland in the sixteenth century. Thirteen countries have carried out reintroduction programmes to restore the range of the Beaver in Europe, We provide a basis for discussing the feasibility and desirability of reintroducing the Beaver to Britain. The basic biology of the Beaver is described, followed by summaries of reintroductions in Europe and an evaluation of their successes and failures. We address the fundamental questions of propagule size, habitat requirements, habitat size and provenance of Beavers to be released, before examining in theory whether reintroducing Beavers to Britain is likely to fulfil UKCINC and IUCN criteria relating to environmental impact, socioeconomics and conservation. We then make suggestions as to how a reintroduction to Britain could proceed. Essential work outstanding includes site assessment and public consultation. The restoration of the Beaver to Britain could be a fitting start to the millennium.

Abstract. During 1992 two questionnaire surveys, aimed at farmers and sections of the general public, were conducted to determine the distribution and status of the adder (Vipera berus L.) in Scotland. In total, 94% of the Scottish mainland and inner isles were covered by the two surveys. The adder appears to be widespread throughout Scotland, although it is absent from much of the Central Valley, the Outer Hebrides and Northern Isles, and from much of the mountainous region between Inverness and Glasgow. The distribution of the adder in Scotland was compared with the distributions of different habitat types defined in the ITE Land Class survey. Adders were strongly associated with areas of heterogeneous land use and negatively associated with intensively arable areas and rugged mountainous areas. Strong evidence was found to suggest that perceived adder abundance had declined during the last 10 years. Although the evidence suggesting that the distribution of adders in Scotland had changed was less strong, the results of the Farm Survey did indicate that it had contracted. The perceived change in status of the adder in Scotland during the last 10 years was compared with the observed changes in land use over the same period.