What is the national animal of Scotland?

The unicorn, which is a genuinely odd choice for a national symbol and entirely deliberate. It appears on the Scottish royal arms from the fifteenth century, and in medieval belief the unicorn was the natural enemy of the lion - which was England's emblem. Choosing it was a statement about the neighbours.

On the arms it is always shown chained, usually with a gold chain around its neck and body. The usual explanation is that a unicorn was believed to be untameable except by a virgin, and so dangerous that only a king could hold one - a chained unicorn is a claim that the monarch controls a wild and unconquerable thing, which is exactly the sort of statement a smaller kingdom next to a larger one wants to make.

The two appear together on the royal arms of the United Kingdom, lion and unicorn supporting the shield, which is the union rendered in heraldry. In Scotland the unicorn is given precedence and stands on the left; in England the lion does. The same arms are drawn differently either side of the border, which most people never notice.