Saving Scotland's Red Squirrels

Only 120,000 red squirrels remain in Scotland, around 75% of the UK total.

Once a common sight across mainland Britain, today red squirrels are sadly absent from most of England and Scotland’s central belt, affected by the spread of the grey squirrel which was introduced in the 19th century. The larger grey squirrel is able to out-compete reds for food and habitat and carries the squirrelpox virus – a virus lethal to reds which does not harm greys.  

Download our free squirrel factsheet to
help you spot them

Many of Scotland’s woods and forests provide the perfect habitat for red squirrels. Volunteers have managed to capture a few on camera on this website! That’s why we’re encouraging you to get involved with the Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels project - the first nationally co-ordinated attempt to stop the decline of red squirrels in Scotland.

The project is a partnership between VisitWoods supporters Scottish Wildlife Trust, Scottish Natural Heritage, Forestry Commission Scotland and Scottish Land & Estates and one of its aims is to encourage woodland owners to create habitats for red squirrels.

To find out more visit the official project website or report a squirrel sighting.

If you’re keen to spot a red squirrel for yourself, why not visit some of our best red squirrel spotting woods in Scotland.

	1.   Bennachie, Aberdeenshire 2.   Culbin, Moray 3.   Galloway Forest Park, Dumfries and Galloway
	4.   Kilmichael Forest, Argyll and Bute 5.   Crinan Woods, Argyll and Bute 6.   Glencharnoch Wood, Highland
	7.   Moncreiffe, Perth and Kinross 8.   Huntly Wood, Perth and Kinross 9.   Backmuir, Angus 10. Abriachan Woods, Inverness

Remember to tell us if you’ve seen a red squirrel in a wood near you by sharing your comments on VisitWoods. Just search for the wood page using the search bar at the top of your page and add your comments and photos.