Royal Dornoch Donation Maintains Support to Wildcat Conservation

Royal Dornoch Golf Club has maintained its support for one of Scotland’s most endangered species after raising a further £2,840 through the support of its members.

Back in 2019, the world-renowned club launched a new clothing range for members which is an emblem based on the iconic Scottish wildcat.

After a first donation of £2,195 from sales was handed over to the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), the wildlife conservation charity that leads the Saving Wildcats project, the club have now raised even more for wildcat conservation in Scotland.

The historic Royal Dornoch Golf Club’s coat of arms, authorised by the Court of the Lord Lyon, includes a wildcat, the crest of the earls of Sutherland.

The club have several member-only lines from which they collected a donation from each sale, this time raising £2,840 for Saving Wildcats, a European partnership project aiming to restore Scotland’s wildcat population by breeding and releasing them into the wild.

While an official photography opportunity to celebrate the occasion with a cheque handover was unable to be achieved due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Royal Dornoch have transferred the funds over to the RZSS’s Highland Wildlife Park, near Aviemore.

Neil Hampton, General Manager at Royal Dornoch, said: “We offer our thanks to the many members that have purchased items from the Wildcat range once more.

“We have gathered together another considerable sum to continue our support of Saving Wildcats and play our part in saving this wonderful animal. We hope they continue to thrive and are delighted to support these efforts.”

David Barclay, ex-situ conservation manager for Saving Wildcats, said: “We thank Royal Dornoch once more for this generous donation and their ongoing support for our project. It has been great to hear that the members’ clothing line is doing so well.

“It is really exciting to be bringing together all the necessary resources and expertise to save Scotland’s wildcats, and we are incredibly grateful to everyone making this vital work possible.”

Golf in Dornoch dates back to 1616 with the golf club recently celebrating success after being crowned ‘Scotland’s Best Golf Course 2020’ at the World Golf Awards.

In a challenging year for all due to the global pandemic, the award was a tonic for all at the Highland club and recognises the quality of their famous links as they look forward to the 2021 season.

For more information on wildcat conservation in Scotland and to sign up to the Saving Wildcats newsletter, visit savingwildcats.org.uk