WILDLIFE experts hope that red squirrels sightings in Gwynedd could lead to its first breeding colony in decades.
Two reds were trapped by a conservation group at Treborth Botannical Gardens and at the Faenol estate near Bangor.
The squirrels were the first found in Gwynedd woodland since 1976, and DNA testing will confirm whether the animals crossed over from Anglesey.
Dr Craig Shuttleworth, of Friends of Anglesey Red Squirrels, was surprised to find the rare red variety on the mainland while out trapping greys.
“We are thrilled to bits - it seems the reds haven’t read the script,” he said.
“I’ve always had a suspicion that grey squirrels have used Menai and Britannia bridges to get across to Anglesey, and this seems to confirm that squirrels can come over.”
He added: “There aren’t many reds near Menai Bridge but if numbers in this part of Anglesey are building, reds will cross over more often, so it’s likely that a breeding population could be established in Gwynedd.”
Red squirrel numbers declined dramatically in the last century, but a breeding programme started in 1998 has boosted numbers of reds on the island to around 300.
Disease and competition for food and land from the larger grey squirrel led to a cull of more than 7000
“The reds’ DNA can be looked at to establish exactly which ones crossed over,” he said.
“We have squirrels from all over the UK and Europe on Anglesey, so it will be interesting from a scientific point of view to find out a little more about their origins.”
“We now have reds appearing in gardens and in woodland, where they haven’t been seen since the mid 1980s” he said.
“Anglesey is the centre of red squirrel conservation in Wales and the blueprint for squirrel conservation in England - we now have to think about how we can preserve them in Gwynedd.”