Field diary.

BRAVO at the EUROWILDCAT meeting

The 9th EUROWILDCAT meeting took place from 22 to 24 September 2026 at Highland Wildlife Park in Kingussie, Scotland, within Cairngorms National Park.

• Host: organised by NatureScot together with the Saving Wildcats project.
• Aim: to bring together conservationists, researchers and experts from across Europe to share scientific advances, monitoring methods and conservation and reintroduction strategies for the European wildcat (Felis silvestris).
• Activities: two days of talks and scientific posters, and field visits to the project’s soft-release pens in the region.

More about the network at euromammals.org/eurowildcat.

What we brought home to Corno de Bico

• The coat is no longer enough. Where hybridisation is widespread, appearance no longer matches genetics. We will therefore also analyse part of the samples without a confirming photo.
• Domestic and wild cats share space near houses. In Scotland, almost every tracked wildcat came within 50 metres of a building. Village edges are the critical zone.
• The lure fades within days. We will record each valerian renewal date and test more frequent renewals.
• Shared science. Organising our data in common European formats will let us compare Corno de Bico with other populations.

The pilot study begins

On 6 July 2026 the Municipality of Paredes de Coura and Universidade Lusófona signed the contract for the wildcat conservation pilot study in the Corno de Bico Protected Landscape, under the project “Valorização da Paisagem Protegida do Corno de Bico”, funded by NORTE 2030.

The method statement, covering the design of the 30 sampling stations, the genetic protocols and the work schedule, was delivered to the Municipality and submitted to ICNF and CCDR Norte for oversight.

Next come equipment preparation, field scouting and first contacts with schools and parish councils.