PINE MARTENS should be stripped of their protected status and culled in parts of Scotland to save the capercaillie, according to a scientific advisor to Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

Professor Torstein Storaas, a respected environmentalist and professor of wildlife management at Hedmark University College, near Oslo, told officials from SNH and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Scotland (RSPB) that the Highlands were not big enough to accommodate both species. He said that in areas where there was conflict, pine martens, a carnivorous mammal, should be sacrificed.

Since the 1970s, the number of capercaillies (woodland grouse) has plummeted from about 20,000 to 2,000. The decline is blamed on predators such as pine martens which raid nests and feed on eggs.

The first study to assess the impact of pine martens will be published later this year by RSPB Scotland, which set up covert cameras on 20 capercaillie nests on its Abernethy Forest reserve. It is understood the footage shows pine martens stealing eggs from almost all of the nests, suggesting that up to 80% of all capercaillie eggs are eaten by the animals.

The results could lead to controlled culls of pine martens, which number about 3,500 in Scotland. A change in legislation would enable ministers to grant special licences allowing for protected species to be controlled to preserve stocks of other threatened animals.

“Capercaillies are being killed by predators such as pine martens and the control of predators in the most important capercaillie areas should be [allowed]. In my view, if predator numbers were reduced, the capercaillie could survive,” Storaas said.

Alex Hogg, chairman of the Scottish Gamekeepers' Association, said: “Pine martens pose a serious threat and it seems to make sense to have controlled culling of predators in zones where capercaillies are trying to make a comeback.”

An SNH spokesman said: “We will look closely at the findings of the RSPB study.”

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