Campaign launched to protect the future of rare capercaillie in the Cairngorms National Park

Visitors to the Cairngorms National Park are being urged to stay away from one of Scotland’s rarest birds.

The UK’s largest national park is home to the capercaillie, a large turkey-sized grouse native to Scottish woodlands.

Fewer than 600 birds are believed to remain in existence across Scotland.

Communities across Badenoch and Strathspey have banded together to help reverse this trend through the Cairngorms Capercaillie Project.

Their aim is to provide a long-term future for the species.

In their latest social media campaign called Let It Be, experts warn disturbing the species is “pushing them closed to extinction.”

Around 85% of Scotland’s capercaillie’s live in the Cairngorms National Park.

Taking to their Facebook page, they shared a video to raise awareness of the risks of disturbing the species during the breeding season, which is a criminal offence.

Capercaillies are forest birds, capable of reaching the grand old age of six.

They are mostly found within pine forests, perched in trees or hidden away on the forest floor.

In the 1970s the Cairngorms were home to around 20,000 capercaillie.

Since then, the park lost the equivalent of one capercaillie every single day, taking its population to just 542.