Capercaillie are a woodland grouse that originate from pinewoods in Scotland and across northern Europe.  A major problem for Capercaillie in Scotland has been the destruction of their native woodland habitat.  Thousands of years ago large areas of Scotland were covered by Pinewoods, but these have gradually disappeared.  Trees were burnt as fuel, cut for timber and cleared for farming, especially for grazing sheep.  It is also thought that changes in climate had an impact on the forests.  It became colder, wetter and windier which made it harder for trees to regenerate naturally.  Sheep and deer ate the seedlings of any trees that did regenerate which stopped them growing to replace those that had been removed.  By the 1950's almost all of this natural forest had gone.

The loss of these forests also  meant the loss of many of the animals and plants that depend on them.  In the case of the Capercaillie the situation became so bad that over 200 years ago it became extinct in Scotland.  However, in Victorian times (1837) a landowner re-introduced the Capercaillie to Scotland by bringing some Swedish birds to his estate in Perthshire.  He started with 13 cocks and 19 hens and these survived and bred so well that after only another 25 years there were over 1000 Capercaillie on this estate alone.  These birds spread beyond his land and were also reintroduced to other areas.

The numbers of Capercaillie continued to grow, and in the early 1970's there were thought to be around 20,000.  Since then the numbers have fallen dramatically, and at the start of this century, there were less than one thousand birds left in the whole of Scotland.  The Scottish Capercaillie is now protected by European Legislation and during 2003, Capercaillie were declared the fastest disappearing bird in the UK.

Capercaillie conservation  work has now been on going for many years, and this LIFE project has contributed significantly to halting the decline in Capercaillie numbers and improve their breeding success.  So far things are heading in the right direction and the most recent national survey showed an increase in Scotland's Capercaillie population. Those who were involved in the project will continue to work towards increasing the areas of good Capercaillie habitat and improving their breeding conditions into the future.