Wildcats could be released in England for first time in hundreds of years

Wildcat expert recruited by Wildlife Trust with view to reintroducing animal currently found in remote parts of Scotland

Wildcats could be released in England for the first time in hundreds of years as the Wildlife Trusts recruit an expert to help introduce them back into the wild.

After being hunted to extinction, the European wildcat is now the UK's rarest native mammal. They are larger than the domestic cat, which are bred from the wildcats of Africa. It has not been spotted in southern England since the 16th century, but now it looks possible that the animal will be found stalking the landscape once more.