Reintroducing wolves in the Scottish Highlands could allow native forests to bloom and help reach climate targets, researchers have suggested.
Grey wolves would prey on red deer, which hamper forest growth by eating tree saplings.
The large carnivores were eradicated from Scotland about 250 years ago, leaving deer with no natural predators.
Leeds University scientists said bringing wolves back to the Cairngorms, southwest, northwest and central Highlands could curb deer numbers and allow native woodland to thrive.
This would store an extra one million tonnes of greenhouse gases per year – 5% of the target for carbon removals from UK woodlands.
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They think a population of about 160 wolves would be realistic, which would be enough to make a sufficient dent in deer numbers.
The research, published in the peer-reviewed journal Ecological Solutions and Evidence journal, acknowledged the idea is controversial, not least with farmers worried about livestock.
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Lee Schofield, a co-author of the study, said they “recognise that substantial and wide-ranging stakeholder and public engagement would clearly be essential before any wolf reintroduction could be considered”.
He added the aim was to “provide new information to inform ongoing and future discussions about the possibility of wolf reintroductions both in the UK and elsewhere”.
The scheme could even be monetised by farmers or landowners if they were paid for removing carbon dioxide, such as via an offsetting scheme, they said.
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Backlash to growing wolf numbers in Europe led to a downgrade to their protected status last year, appeasing aggrieved farmers but alarming environmentalists.
The wolf population in western Europe currently sits at around 12,000, occupying 67% of their former territory.
British deer numbers have ballooned in recent decades, from about 450,000 in the 1970s to two million today – the highest level for 1,000 years.
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The increase has prompted calls to the public to eat more wild venison, which Forestry England describes as “extraordinarily ethical and sustainable”.
The animals have been chomping their way through the country’s target to plant more trees to help reach net zero climate targets.
The study said only 4% of Scotland remains blanketed by woodland today, making it one of the least forested places in Europe.
