El Chapo's Fugitive Timeline Outmatched by Scottish Island Stoat's Seven-Month Escape

A single stoat has been captured on the Scottish island of Rousay after a seven-month search costing £150,000, a feat that kept the elusive predator on the run for longer than Mexican drug lord Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán's infamous six-month escape from prison in 2015.

The stoat was first reported in April and is believed to have swum to Rousay from another Orkney island. Its presence was confirmed in May, raising concerns about its potential threat to native wildlife, including owls and the endangered Orkney vole. The Orkney Native Wildlife Project (ONWP), in collaboration with other organizations, launched an extensive operation to locate and capture the animal.

The search employed a range of methods, including dog patrols, AI-assisted trail cameras, and other monitoring technologies. The effort culminated on October 9 with the capture of the male stoat. ONWP stated they are confident that this was an isolated incident and no breeding pairs are present on the island.

Alice Head-Rapson, an ONWP trapper involved in the capture, described the operation as a significant test of their skills. "My teammate, Benjy, and I spent the summer and autumn monitoring as much of Rousay as we can and expanding our trap networks," Head-Rapson said. "Our work has certainly paid off!" She expressed hope that this success would contribute to protecting wildlife across Orkney.

Volunteers and the local community played a crucial role in the operation. Ian Barker, a local islander involved in the search, highlighted the difficulty of tracking the small, fast-moving animal across the island's challenging terrain. "We were looking for just one stealthy, fast-moving animal across 4,500 hectares of island," Barker noted, emphasizing the collaborative effort between professionals and volunteers. "I'm really happy that we succeeded in catching this stoat, and that we've managed to protect our native wildlife."

Stoats are native to the UK mainland but are considered invasive predators in the Orkney Islands, where they have been present since 2010. The ONWP has been working to reduce the risk posed by stoats, having removed over 9,100 individuals to date with the support of landowners and volunteers.