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The European Roe Deer (Capreolus capreolus), also known as the Western Roe Deer or chevreuil, is an Eurasian species of deer. It is relatively small, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapted to cold environments. Roe Deer are widespread in Western Europe, from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia, and from the British Isles to the Caucasus. It is distinct from the somewhat larger Siberian Roe Deer.

The Roe Deer is distinct from the somewhat larger Siberian Roe Deer (Capreolus pygargus) that is found from the Ural Mountains to as far east as China and Siberia. The two species meet at the Caucasus Mountains, with the European species occupying the southern flank of the mountain ranges and adjacent Asia Minor and the Siberian species occupying the northern flank of the mountain ranges.

Within Europe, the European Roe Deer occurs in most areas, with the exception of northernmost Scandinavia (north of Narvik) and some of the islands, notably Iceland, Ireland, and the Mediterranean Sea islands; in the Mediterranean region it is largely confined to mountainous regions, and is absent or rare at low levels. Scottish roe deer were introduced to the Lissadell Estate in Co. Sligo in the Republic of Ireland around 1870 by Sir Henry Gore-Booth, Bt. The Lissadell deer were noted for their occasional abnormal antlers and survived in that general area for about 50 years before they died out and there are not believed to be any roe deer currently extant in Ireland.

German colonial administrators introduced Roe deer to the island of Pohnpei in Micronesia. They are hunted by locals in very steep and heavily vegetated terrain. The meat is openly sold in markets and restaurants in Kolonia, the capital city of Pohnpei and the Federated States of Micronesia.

The roe is a dapper woodland deer. Very widespread on the Scottish mainland, it is also quite shy of humans. So if you see a roe, keep your distance, stay quiet and hope for a prolonged view.

What to look for
The roe is a medium-sized deer (much smaller than red deer) with a sleek brown coat, large black eyes and nose and a very distinctive white patch on its rump. Males (bucks) have short antlers; females (‘does’) don’t.

Interesting facts
Mating season for roe deer is in July and August. At this time, bucks chase does around prominent features such as a tree of large rock. This produces circles or figure-of-eight patterns of flattened vegetation, known as ‘roe deer rings’.

By the 1700s, the north of Scotland was the only part of Britain where native roe deer survived. Since then, re-introductions in many places and the cover provided by new plantations have allowed roe to spread and thrive.
When and where to see

The most likely places to see a roe deer are often at the fringe of woods, where trees meet fields or moorland, or along quiet woodland paths. Early morning and dusk are good times. Listen for the loud bark of roe bucks in summer.

By appearance the Scottish wildcat resembles a very muscular domestic tabby, the coat is made up of well defined brown and black stripes and usually has a ruffled appearance due to its thickness. The gait is more like that of a big cat and the face and jaw are wider and more heavy set than the domestic cat. Most apparent is the beautiful tail; thick and ringed with perfect bands of black and brown ending in a blunt black tip. The Scottish form is the largest in the wildcat family with males typically between 6-9kg (13-17lb) and females 5-7kg (11-15lb), around 50% larger than the average domestic cat. Fossil examples measuring 4 feet from nose to tail have been found; such a cat could have weighed around 14kg (30lb).

Their body is an evolutionary perfection; eighteen razor sharp retractable claws and rotating wrists for gripping prey and climbing trees, immensely powerful thigh muscles for 30mph sprinting, the ability to fall from the highest pine tree, land on its feet and walk away unscathed, incredible stealth, balance and agility all wrapped in a thick, camoflaged and religiously cleaned coat with one downy layer to keep in the warm and another outer layer to keep out the rain and cold.

Unique to Britain, and now only found in Scotland, they are a sub species of the European wildcat (felis silvestris silvestris) and although similar to the European the Scottish is slightly larger with a thicker coat, more heavily camoflaged and hunts and lives across a wider range of habitats; it is also infamously known as the only wild animal that can never be tamed by human hand, even when captive reared.

Ecologically the wildcat plays an improtant role as a predator and controller of small to medium size prey, and even today is a friend to crop farmers as an excellent controller of alien pest species such as rabbits. They are pure carnivores and eat only meat, consuming almost every part of any kill they make; the coat providing roughage, the bones calcium and the meat everything else. Their favoured prey is rabbit and where rabbit is unavailable rodents and small mammals provide the staple food source. This pure meat diet means that parasitic worms are a common problem and wildcats eat long blades of grass which help dislodge and remove some of the worms from their system, it is also thought that the grass provides essential folic acid to their system.

They use a variety of strategies to hunt similar to most cats with stealth, speed and power being the key ingredients. Utilising all their senses to track and find suitable prey the hunting cat will then utilise its camoflage and patience to stalk as close as possible before a full speed sprint, catch and kill. Claws are used to grab and pull down running prey whilst the kill is usually by a bite to the neck breaking the spine or crushing the spinal cord. Sometimes a bite to the throat causing suffocation is used with larger prey. Territories usually cover a few square miles and the resident wildcat will know every inch, so ambush hunting is also often used at places in the territory where prey can be reliably expected at certain times of day; cats are exceptional timekeepers.

Wildcats show a reduced fear of water to domestic cats and are suggested to occasionally fish; rather than diving in like the specialised Fishing Cat, they dip their paws into shallow burns or loch edges to try and scoop out passing fish just as a kitten scoops a ball into the air over its head then turns and pounces onto it; whilst very fun it's also instinct teaching the kitten how to fish. Lizards, eels and frogs are other unusual and minor parts of the wildcat diet.

Undeniably lambs can be in some trouble during season though the historical response of killing the guilty cat seems to have taught the modern form to leave livestock off the menu, today most farmers are very proud of having a wildcat sharing territory with them. Mountain hare are an occasional if challenging catch and the wildcat is known apocryphally to hunt young and small species of deer successfully. Ground nesting birds do present an easy target however they make up a small percentage of the total diet; the captive population will only eat game bird if it's clear absolutely nothing else is going to be forthcoming suggesting they simply aren't too excited by the taste. Other birds are hunted randomly and only opportunistically; for a wildcat most birds offer a very small meal for considerable effort.

Please read more at The Scottish Wildcat Association

At around 1.2 metres long, the harbour porpoise is much smaller than its dolphin relatives and much, much smaller than the minkes and other great whales that swim in Scottish waters. Harbour porpoises are widespread around Scotland, and you might see them from a boat, harbour, beach or clifftop almost anywhere from Shetland to the Borders.

What to look for
In addition to being small in overall size, the harbour porpoise has a small, triangular, fairly upright dorsal fin (a dolphin’s dorsal curves backwards). It doesn’t break the surface for long, so you have to keep looking at a patch of water where you think you’ve seen some action to catch glimpses of the same animal - or others in its group - surfacing again. Harbour porpoises can use quite shallow water. So scanning the nearby sea from a harbour wall, or watching from the deck of a ferry as you draw near the land, can be ways to glimpse a porpoise.

Interesting facts
Harbour porpoise need to watch their backs in case a larger relation is out to get them. Bottlenose dolphins in the Moray Firth sometimes catch and kill them. In many parts of Europe, porpoise numbers have slumped because of drownings in fishing nets, but the population around many parts of Scotland still seems to be fairly strong.

When and where to see
Go on any accredited wildlife-watching boat tour around Scotland and you’ll have a good chance of seeing harbour porpoise.

With its dappled coat and dog-like head shape, the common or ‘harbour’ seal is the seal most likely to be seen by many watchers near land, whether looking across to a haul-out site, or from an eco-tour boat.

What to look for
At times when all you can see is a seal’s head poking up from the water, it can be hard to tell a common seal from a grey. If you can, look at the shape of the nostrils. A common seal’s nostrils slant down in a ‘V’ shape to almost touch, whereas grey seal nostrils are near-parallel slits. Seals hauled-out on a sandbanks or mudflats are likely to be common.

Interesting facts
Common seal males - the bulls - hold underwater territories, where they roar to attract females - cows - and repel rival bulls. These sounds (like other underwater wildlife noises, from shrimp crackles to whale songs) can be heard through special underwater microphones called ‘hydrophones’, developed for military use and now invaluable in studies of the behaviour of marine creatures.

When and where to see
Common seals pup in summer. So there can be a good deal of activity at sandbank haul-outs then. Many accredited wildlife boat tours go near (but not too close) to seal loafing areas in summer. If travelling the A9 over the Cromarty Firth bridge, stop at one of the large lay-bys close to the bridge (just before the north end, travelling from Invergordon, or at the southern end) and look east at low tide to see sandbanks where common seals may be loafing. Also look for single seals poised like weird bananas on inshore rocks at higher tides, bending their body up to keep as much as possible clear of the water.