IT’S one of Scotland’s most unusual tourist attractions and regularly draws thousands of visitors a year to the village of Newtonmore.
The Wildcat Centre in the village’s Main Street runs the Wildcat Trail and Wildcat Experience which features more than 130 brightly-painted life size models of Scottish wildcats, a species which is under serious threat of extinction.
It is now the centre itself which could soon be extinct, according to reports about the Newtonmore Community Woodland & Development Trust, a group of dedicated volunteers whose numbers are sadly declining.
The trust is a non profit making charity set up in 1998 to maintain and manage the areas of woodland and the Wildcat Trail around Newtonmore. The Board of Trustees is made up of local volunteers.
The trust depends on sales and donations to operate the centre which will celebrate its 20th anniversary next year. Ahead of a crucial AGM on April 30, the trust has issued an appeal for more volunteers to help and is also seeking cash support to keep its services going.
Paul Woolrich, the trust’s chairman, told the Strathspey and Badenoch Herald: “At the moment we are struggling to find volunteers and our funds are depleting year on year as membership subscriptions and donations decline.
“At the same time we have ever-increasing overheads to keep the centre open. We provide a great service for visitors to the village. The Wildcat Experience and Wildcat Trail are recognised VisitScotland four star attractions.
“However without an injection of funds we cannot keep going and the trust will have to fold resulting in the closure of the wildcat centre.”
People who sign up for the Wildcat Experience are able to hunt for 132 painted model wildcats on a 10km (six mile) trail around the village. The wildcats can be in local gardens, on roofs, and up trees.
Visitors can gain rewards depending on how many they find – a certificate if they spot 25 of the elusive cats and a small prize if they find 50 of them.
People who have tried the tourist attraction have posted on Facebook to say: “The Wildcat Experience is one of the most fun activities to do if you’re on holiday in the Newtonmore area.
“The kids loved it (almost as much as the adults!) It’s a great way to encourage kids to get outdoors and do lots of walking. Our 3 and 6 year old walked for miles and loved spotting the painted cats all round the village. We got to 99 so we will certainly be back to find more. Great value too at only £7 per pack.
“It gave us a whole week of fun.”
The centre and the experience help to promote the species and the fact that it is so badly under threat. It is one of Scotland’s rarest and most endangered mammals, and the only wild member of the cat family in the UK
Real wildcats can be seen at at the nearby Highland Wildlife Park, owned by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland which earlier this year issued a report saying the wildcat population was no longer viable and attempts are being made to boost the population.
Newtonmore’s wildcats draw attention to this ongoing problem.
Woolrich added: “We would be extremely grateful for any assistance through increased membership and any donations.”
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