Scottish Highlands activity - autumn migration theory?

I've been tracking reports from the Cairngorms region and there's definitely a pattern emerging. Every September through November, we get a spike in sightings around Glen Coe and Braemar. I'm wondering if these creatures might be migratory - moving south as winter approaches, heading toward more temperate lowland areas.

The theory would be that they follow the same general routes their populations have used for centuries, probably using river valleys as corridors. This would explain why we see clusters of reports in the same locations year after year, and why activity seems seasonal.

Has anyone here got access to historical sighting data that might support this? I'm thinking we need to map 20-30 years of reports and see if the temporal patterns hold up.

I'm wondering if these creatures might be migratory

Lovely idea but you're applying human zoological frameworks to creatures that, frankly, we don't have confirmed existence for yet. Start with the sightings, sure, but don't get ahead of yourself building migration models. Occam's razor and all that.

The Cairngorms thing is real though. I've got contacts in the Aviemore hiking community and they'll mention "unusual encounters" after a few pints. Nothing concrete, but enough anecdotal stuff that there's definitely *something* moving about in the remoter glens. Whether it's a unknown ape species or something else, dunno.

Have you looked at the BFRO database? Pretty sure they've got a UK section now. Would be a good starting point for your historical data. Just saying, if you're going to build a thesis on this, you need to be rigorous about your sources.

Migration theory is solid from an evolutionary perspective. Large primates need massive territories and seasonal food sources would drive movement patterns. The Highlands have enough wild space that a breeding population could theoretically exist and move around without constant contact with humans.