Wildcat (Felis silvestris)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Vertebrate > terrestrial mammal > Carnivorous mammal |
| Red List Status: | Critically Endangered (Not Relevant) [CR(nr)] |
| D5 Status: | Included in the baseline Red List Index for England (Wilkins, Wilson & Brown, 2022) |
| Section 41 Status: | (not listed) |
| Taxa Included Synonym: | (none) |
| UKSI Recommended Name: | Felis silvestris |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | Schreber, 1777 |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | Mathews & Harrower, 2020 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Although species is extinct in England there are records which suggest that a small population persisted in Exmoor until roughly 100 years ago, however, this is both unproven and difficult to prove. Recent work suggests that there is potentially suitable habitat in the South-West of England, however, further work to assess both the biological and social feasibility of a reintroduction is necessary. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Interbreeding with domestic cats is a unique pressure to this species. Wildcats have also been specifically targeted for persecution. Specific threats to this species requires specific counteractions. |
| Question 3: | At a landscape scale, would the species benefit from untargeted habitat management to increase habitat mosaics, structural diversity, or particular successional stages? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Promoting a landscape that offers a mix of woodland, grassland, and scrub, alongside measures to increase the connectivity of these habitats, could support the wildcat population by enhancing prey availability and providing safe corridors for movement. |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 3. National Monitoring Plan agreed and implemented |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Low - Combination or other (detail in comments) |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Structured - sufficient |
| Species Comments: | Combination of habitat availability and abundance of domestic cats. |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Produce a comprehensive feasibility assessment for reintroductions in England incorporating insights gained from the current reintroduction of wildcats to Cairngorms in Scotland. This assessment should Include detailed evaluations of habitat suitability, community perspectives and a thorough threats assessment. Additionally, it should address the need for conflict mitigation strategies. The scope of the feasibility studies will be refined based on the outcomes from Scotland to better understand potential threats.
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 3-5 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 20 sites
High priority sites: SW England
Comments: Work to assess feasibility of a reintroduction in Southwest of England. Vincent Wildlife Trust has published pilot, but no established plan exists.
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Conduct a baseline assessment of domestic and feral cat populations to accurately calculate the scale and cost of mitigation and inform modelling for future reintroductions.
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 3-5 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 20 sites
High priority sites: SW England
Comments: Work has been undertaken to assess feasibility of a reintroduction in Southwest England. Vincent Wildlife Trust has published pilot but no established plan exists.
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Raise awareness of hybridisation and mitigation strategies in public perception. This should include widespread education and information dissemination about how neutering domestic cats (including strays) can be beneficial for both domestic and wild cats, monitoring pet cats' health, and actions owners can take if their cat is identified as carrying diseases.
Action targets: 5. Remedial action identified
Action type: Education/awareness raising
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: National
High priority sites:
Comments: Neutering of domestic cats (pets and strays) in areas where wildcats occur would help to decrease the pressure of hybridisation. Monitoring to assess success and revised level of risk would be a long term and potentially costly undertaking. Strays can have ear clips to allow visual identification that they have been spayed to allow trailcam monitoring of a potential release site, but this is not a viable option for pet cats.
Acknowledgment:
Data used on this website are adapted from Threatened species recovery actions 2025 baseline (JP065): Technical report and spreadsheet user guide (Natural England, 2025). Available here.