The native red squirrel is increasingly coming under threat by the spread of the introduced North American grey squirrel throughout the UK. The grey outnumbers the red squirrels by about twenty to one, with 75% of red squirrels (120,000) living in Scotland.

Competition from grey squirrels and their capability to spread disease is by far the greatest factor in the red squirrel decline, but there are other factors aiding the decline; fragmentation of suitable habitats through deforestation and development, lack of tree seed food and the ever increasing road casualities all play their part.

The aim within Fife and throughout Scotland is to conserve the population of red squirrels and prevent further displacement by the grey squirrel.

Fife is fortunate to still have a healthy population of red squirrels and it is our aim to conserve these emblematic mammels. The Fife Red Squirrel Group is working to promote and protect the red squirrel by increasing public awareness, surveying and monitoring, delivering an education programme and implementing a conservation strategy that will focus initially around Fife's core red squirrel areas.