North East Scotland Mammal Network

by Nick Littlewood

Everyone likes a league table – but here’s one you won’t see anywhere else; the top ten of North East Scotland’s mammals, ranked by number of records in 2024. 

1	Red Squirrel	2788
2	Roe Deer	819
3	Pine Marten	420
4	Rabbit	367
5	Mole	225
6	Wood Mouse	222
7	Badger	203
8	Grey Seal	189
9	Brown Hare	168
10	Hedgehog	167

Mammal records clearly reflect the behaviour of recorders more than simply abundance of species. People are more likely to notice and identify conspicuous species. But there is a further element; how much interest there is in the species. Almost any of us would take far more notice of a Pine Marten than of the Rabbit droppings that we stand on while watching the marten and this is reflected in their relative positions here. 

The top ten needs caveats. Primary among these is that it is compiled from records contributed through specific platforms including NESBReC and iRecord (which includes data from BirdTrack, Mammal Mapper App and others) so this may lead to some unknown biases. However, Red Squirrel, at number 1, clearly benefits from the triple whammy of being easy to identify, generally endearing and having a conservation project dedicated to it (Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels). Most other species are conspicuous and easy to identify either in the flesh or through signs (e.g. Mole). However, Wood Mouse at number 6 may be a surprising inclusion, abundant though it is. Grey Seal represents the only top-ten marine mammal while Hedgehog hangs on the precipice of dropping out of the top ten. 

We can look at individual species maps too, for insights into recorder activity and also some broad indications of species ranges. The Roe Deer tetrad (2 km × 2 km) map shows a pattern that typifies recording in the region – lots of recording around Aberdeen and along Deeside and, to a lesser extent, Donside, with records rather more scattered elsewhere. The Grey Seal map shows a distinct Aberdeen to Peterhead bias and also records at Fraserburgh, but very few elsewhere. Numbers do tend to be higher along our east coast, especially close to the Ythan estuary haul out. However, all parts of out coast are visited at least occasionally by this species but a lone animal swimming past a north Aberdeenshire headland is far less likely to be noticed. Hedgehog shows a scatter across the region so, even though numbers may be diminished, it remains widely distributed. The cluster around Banchory may suggest strong populations there or diligent recorders.  

Records are currently being used to write the 2024 North East Scotland Mammal Report, which will appear within the pages of the 2024 North East Scotland Bird Report, likely early in 2026. Reports from 2017-2022 can be downloaded from Scottish Ornithologists Club. Website.