Jethro Tull star and cat conservation supporter Ian Anderson is helping highlight Edinburgh Zoo's international push to save endangered feline species.
Anderson backed the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s (RZSS) cat conservation projects around the world at a special event at the zoo on Monday night when he spoke about the importance of keeping such lifelines going.
The event featured talks on efforts to save species including Pallas’s cat, Arabian sand cats and Scotland’s wildcat, pictured below, to raise awareness and support for small cat projects.
The RZSS charity, which runs Edinburgh Zoo, is involved in schemes in Scotland, Nepal, Mongolia, Iran, Kazakhstan and United Arab Emirates.
The event, which raised funds through donations to support the projects, looked at the conservation of small cat species in the wild, providing information about what the RZSS is doing to save species from the threat of extinction.
Guests explored the objectives taken on by RZSS through Scottish wildcat action and the key role the charity is playing in halting the decline in the UK’s last remaining wildcat species.
Rare footage and information about how the team in RZSS Edinburgh Zoo’s WildGenes lab are working closely with Al Ain Zoo in the UAE and the sand cat breeding programmes to study and help conserve Arabian sand cats, pictured below.
As well as Anderson, David Barclay, RZSS cat conservation project officer talked about his experiences in the field, from protecting the wildcat in Scotland to searching for rare Pallas’s cats in the Himalayas, Mongolia and Iran.
Jo Paulson RZSS, events executive, said: “It was such a privilege to have Ian Anderson join us for the evening and to share his passion for cat conservation.
"This event has hopefully given people a better understanding of the work being carried out to help numerous species of small cat such as the Scottish wildcat, the Pallas’s cat and the Arabian sand cat; as well as why it so important to save these species.”
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