Trees for Life, a rewilding charity, has announced plans to launch a pioneering Missing Species Programme that aims to bring back four of Scotland’s lost keystone animals to the Scottish Highlands. The animals in question are the lynx, beavers, red squirrels, and modern-day aurochs.
This ambitious programme, which will require £3.6m to fund its first five years, aims to tackle the nature and climate emergencies while generating significant benefits for communities, including through nature tourism. Trees for Life has launched a supporter appeal to raise an initial £25,000 to kickstart the initiative and is reaching out to major funders to help resource the programme.
According to Trees for Life’s chief executive Steve Micklewright, bringing back these four important species is about restarting the natural engines of Scotland’s ecosystems. “The Highlands can become a beacon of hope in the fight against extinction and wildlife loss,” he said.
Ensuring successful coexistence between wildlife and people is crucial, says Trees for Life. This includes thorough community discussions, management measures, and ensuring local people can enjoy the social and economic benefits.
Beavers create wetlands that support wildlife, purify water, and reduce flooding. Officially reintroduced to Scotland in 2009 after being hunted to extinction 400 years ago, beavers have only been restored to a few sites, and are missing from much suitable habitat. Trees for Life and Forestry and Land Scotland recently partnered to reintroduce beavers to Glen Affric, and a community discussion is currently underway to explore the potential for reintroducing beavers to the Loch Ness area.
The elusive Eurasian lynx, which preys on deer, can help manage deer numbers and enable more young trees to survive and woodlands to regenerate. Scotland – where lynx were made extinct in the Middle Ages – is one of a few countries of the species’ range from which it remains missing. Trees for Life has been working for five years with diverse stakeholders through the Lynx to Scotland partnership to assess what an official reintroduction might involve and is preparing for further local discussions in 2026.
Tauros are a breed of domestic cattle that have been ‘back-bred’ by scientists in the Netherlands to be as similar as possible to the ancient aurochs – the wild ancestor of all domestic cattle. Trees for Life is carrying out assessments at its 4,000-hectare Dundreggan estate near Loch Ness for what would be the UK’s first introduction of a herd of tauros – effectively reintroducing the aurochs, four centuries after its extinction. Their role in ecological restoration would be scientifically studied.
Finally, the red squirrel, which was brought to the edge of extinction in the UK by historic habitat loss and human persecution, remains missing from much of the Highlands. Trees for Life has relocated reds to woodlands in the northern Highlands – establishing 13 new and flourishing populations so far – and is investigating opportunities to create further new populations of reds.
To learn more about the Missing Species Programme, visit treesforlife.org.uk/missing-species.
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