The
fauna of Scotland is generally typical of the north-west
European part of the
Palearctic realm, although several of the country's larger
mammals were hunted to
extinction in historic times.
Scotland's diverse
temperate environments support 62 species of wild mammals, including a population of
wildcats and important numbers of
grey and
harbour seals. Many populations of
moorland birds, including
blackcock and the famous
red grouse, live here, and the country has internationally significant
nesting grounds for
seabirds such as the
northern gannet. The
golden eagle has become a national icon, and
white-tailed eagles and
ospreys have recently
re-colonised the land. The
Scottish crossbill is the only
endemic vertebrate species in the
British Isles. Scotland’s seas are among the most biologically productive in the world; it is estimated that the total number of Scottish marine species exceeds 40,000. Included in the country's ocean inventory are the
Darwin Mounds, are an important area of cold water coral reefs discovered in 1988. Inland, nearly 400 genetically distinct populations of
Atlantic Salmon live in Scottish rivers. Of the 42 species of fish found in the country's fresh waters, half have arrived by natural colonisation and half by human introduction. Only six amphibians and four land reptiles are
native to Scotland, but many species of
invertebrates live here that are otherwise rare in the
United Kingdom (UK). An estimated 14,000 species of insect, including rare bees and butterflies protected by conservation action plans inhabit Scotland. ==Mycota==