Two “vulnerable” wildcats have been found dead shortly after being released into the Cairngorms.
Saving Wildcats confirmed the female captive-bred wildcats were released into the Cairngorms National Park this summer.
They were two of nine animals involved in the project, following on from the release of 19 wildcats last year.
However, the latest release has proved to be “significantly more challenging”.
The conversation partnership said one of the animals was found hit by a vehicle while the other died of starvation.
The first was a female wildcat named Midge who was found by Cairngorms National Park rangers on an early morning patrol.
Midge had been hit by a vehicle the night before and suffered fatal injuries.
Wildcats had ‘unexpected’ death in Cairngorms
Dr Keri Langridge, who is part of the Saving Wildcats team, said: “This was very bad luck – we expected our first road mortality to be on the A9 or one of the larger trunk roads, not on a minor road at midnight.
“Midge was doing well before this and had a stomach full of voles and mice.”
The second cat, named Oats, died of starvation around four weeks after her release.
Saving Wildcats said their team, who track the cats with GPS-radio collars, went to look for the cat and found she had not moved.
The area she was in was unlikely to have enough prey to feed on, and despite leaving out food for the cat, Oats had not returned.
Dr Helen Senn, the project leader of Saving Wildcats, said: “Although we prepare the wildcats for release in the best way possible, life in the wild is incredibly challenging for all animals.
“Immediately after release they are particularly vulnerable as they learn to adapt to their new life in the wild, to locate themselves in their environment, to learn about threats, and to become efficient hunters.
“Nobody is more saddened by the loss of these animals than the people working with them, because a lot of care is put into providing each released animal with the best chance possible.”
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