Conservation Of An Endangered Species
Set in the beautiful highland region of Scotland, The Tigers Of Scotland is a nature documentary predominantly centred around the conservation efforts of the local authorities to protect the beautiful Scottish wildcat. For the most part, the documentary does well to mix interesting educational content with a compelling argument for reintroducing these cats back to the wild. While the film feels a little sporadic as it jumps between historical content and talking heads, for the most part The Tigers Of Scotland does well to maintain interest through to its final closing scenes. The film begins with a poetic advertisement of Scotland. This brief opening introduces us to the culture, society and historical significance of Scotland before honing in on the elusive Scottish Wildcat. This endangered, majestic creature looks very similar to our domestic feline companions at home but thankfully conservationists are at hand to help distinguish the differences. This educational documentary then continues by enlightening us on just how threatened this species is and the importance of re-integrating the wildcat back into the wild, allowing it to thrive once again. At roughly an hour long, The Tigers Of Scotland is a relatively short documentary but it certainly packs a lot into its short run time. The inclusion of the lynx, a similar example of reintroducing a species into the wild and it thriving, is a nice touch too along with the potential impact on livestock and the neighbouring areas. This balanced approach works well for the most part although with more talking heads than footage of the wildcat itself, The Tigers Of Scotland is a documentary much more interested in the conservation aspect of this species rather than showing the cat in action. While this works for the overall message this documentary has, those looking for something similar to David Attenborough’s style of raw footage may be left a little disappointed. With anywhere between 100 and 400 Scottish wildcats left and the species on the verge of extinction, The Tigers Of Scotland is an important documentary, one that’s certainly enlightened this reviewer on just how endangered this beautiful creature is. The numerous questions against its re-integration are dissected and answered honestly too, with plenty of interesting historical and societal issues raised and looked at in more detail. While some may be turned off by the lack of raw footage of the Scottish wildcat itself, The Tigers Of Scotland does what it sets out to do, delivering a thought provoking, educational documentary on a very important subject.
