Pine martens are recovering across the UK following legal protection and translocation. Their prey relationships with squirrels and small mammals have welfare and ecological implications.
Pine marten predation of grey squirrels has welfare implications for individual squirrels killed, but also positive ecological consequences — grey squirrel suppression may facilitate red squirrel recovery. The welfare of individual prey animals must be considered alongside population-level effects. Pine martens as predators reduce prey populations through individual deaths, but efficient predator-prey dynamics typically involve rapid killing methods. The ecological relationship between pine marten recovery and grey squirrel suppression offers a natural, welfare-neutral alternative to lethal grey squirrel control by humans. Supporting pine marten recovery may reduce the need for more extensive grey squirrel management programmes.