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Drone 'panicked' pregnant reindeer in Cairngorms

Getty Images A close up image of a reindeer in the Cairngorms. It has a dark grey face and lighter grey colouring across the rest of its coat. The reindeer has a red ear tag.Getty Images
The Cairngorms has the UK's only free-roaming reindeer herd

A drone has caused reindeer, some of them heavily pregnant, to "panic and run" in the Cairngorms.

The animals, members of the UK's only free-roaming reindeer herd, were spooked in an incident over the weekend.

Cairngorm Reindeer Herd, which is based near Aviemore, said some of the females were only weeks away from giving birth.

It has appealed to drone users not to disturb the animals, or wildlife in the area.

Herders, who were nearby, were able to move the reindeer to a safe location.

In a social media post, Cairngorm Reindeer Herd said: "The area and hills are getting busier and as a result we are seeing more drones in use.

"We therefore politely request that drone users are extremely sensitive whilst flying in areas where the reindeer roam and do not deliberately target them.

"The reindeer were on leased land and should feel safe."

Getty Images A reindeer herder wearing a hat and a red outdoor jacket carries a bag of feed among the reindeer. There is snow covering the ground, and the coats of the reindeer. There is a lone pine tree in the background.Getty Images
The herd, in a picture taken in winter 2013, was established in the 1950s

Reindeer have lived in the Cairngorms National Park since 1952 and graze on more than 10,000 acres (4,047ha).

They were introduced by Mikel Utsi, a reindeer herder from Lapland, and his wife Dr Ethel Lindgren.

There are about 150 reindeer in the herd, mostly ranging on the Cairngorm mountains with the remainder on the Glenlivet Estate in Moray.

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