Protecting the European wildcat
When humans began venturing into virgin land, the demise of the wild animal began. Despite the odds stacked against it, the European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris), as cute as a domesticated tabby but a little more fierce, has managed to survive across Europe in countries like France, Germany and Spain. But can the European wildcat be protected from potential danger? Yes, says a team of German and Spanish researchers who successfully developed an ecological model that identifies potential habitats and corridors for this wildcat. Their findings were recently published in the scientific journal Biological Conservation. For years, Europeans have been diligent in their quest to implement conservation measures for the European wildcat across the continent, in particular in central Europe. But three crucial factors have played havoc on the animal's life: the fragmentation or destruction of its habitat; crossbreeding between wild and domestic cats; and injuries triggered by increased road traffic. For this study, the model was used in the German federal state of Rheinland-Pfalz, in particular the southern Eifel region near Wittlich (bordering Belgium) and Bienwald (bordering France). Around 75% of the area in question is covered by forest and is home to half the entire German wildcat population. The results of the 4-year study show that almost 50% of Rheinland-Pfalz has the potential to be a home for 1 600 females. Not only can this model be adapted for other regions, say the researchers, but it can prove instrumental in determining how to best protect the European wildcat, currently on the endangered species list. The researchers hail from Germany's Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ), the Freie Universität Berlin, OEKO-LOG field research in Parlow and the Biological Station in Euskirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, as well as the Doñana Biological Station of the Spanish Council for Scientific Research. Nina Klar, a PhD student at UFZ, says a decisive factor for wildcat habitat is how far it is from human settlements. 'The shy forest-dwellers make a large loop around settlements,' she explains. 'Within a radius of 1 kilometre from settlements they occur more rarely and even with individual houses or roads they still keep a distance of 200 metres.' The team also found that the wildcats choose to live near water, as well as forest edges, because they have better access to prey. For his part, Spanish researcher Dr Nestor Fernandez says: 'The wildcats protect themselves not only against humans and dogs, but also come into less contact with domestic cats, which could explain the low rate of interbreeding between the two species.' The researchers have developed a database containing 13,000 entries on the home ranges of wildcats. In order to track the wildcats' home ranges, the team fitted six tomcats and six female cats with radio-transmitters. Their findings indicate that despite solid habitat conditions in the forest areas, the number of wildcat sightings is close to none. A major problem is that the corridors that the animals could use to enter the areas are considered inadequate. Meanwhile, researchers and experts will use this study to further promote the protection of the European wildcat. However, support from the German state is needed. For example, members of BUND (League for the Environment and Nature Conservation Germany) say they will establish a 20,000-kilometre network of forest corridors in the coming years via the 'rescue network wildcat' project. 'Nationwide or international planning of nature conservation is the basis for migration corridors of wild animals,' says Thomas Moelich, BUND coordinator of the 'rescue network wildcat'. Statistics show that the number of wildcats in Germany stands somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000. The creation of the corridors will help reconnect isolated populations and make areas accessible to the wildcat.
Countries
Germany, Spain