Beavers can bring many benefits to our natural habitat here in the UK. That's why it's recently been announced that the Eurasian Beaver is now a European protected species here in England, meaning it's now illegal to capture, kill, injure or disturb them. This move has been introduced to avoid them becoming at risk of extinction again.
If you're not already familiar with beavers, they are one of the largest herbivores which were once native to British shores, until hunting caused them to become extinct in the UK in the 16th century.
The beaver first became extinct here in the UK as they were hunted for their fur, meat and 'castoreum', a secretion used in perfumes, food and medicine.
They have been making the headlines in recent months as there are plans to reintroduce them to the UK because of the environmental benefits they bring to the country. According to the Wildlife Trust, some of the main beaver benefits include:
- They help to reduce downstream flooding - the channels, dams and wetland habitats that beavers create hold back water and release it more slowly after heavy rain
- They increase water retention
- They clean water
- They reduce siltation, which pollutes water
Beavers have already been reintroduced into some areas of the UK through local Wildlife Trusts and reintroduction projects have been going on in Europe for years with some great success in terms of breeding and population growth.
How do they help the environment?
Beavers forage close to water and use bark from trees to build their lodges which encourages regrowth and allows tree species to diversify to create different heights and ages of trees. This is the beavers way of naturally Coppicing which is a method of managing bank side trees.
They can also benefit flood risk areas with their dams.
Benefits of beaver dams
Beaver dams store flood water to moderate water flows and minimises the height of flooding which can be a real positive.
There have however been cases when the dams cause more issues such as unwanted localised flooding. In these cases, beavers may need to be moved on as mitigation may not be successful.
Fun facts about beavers
They’re the largest living rodents in the world.
They have flattened scale covered tails and webbed feet to help them swim through the water at 5 mph.
Their scaled tails aren’t just to help them swim - beavers also slap the water with them to startle any predators.
There are only two different species of beavers The American beaver (Castor canadensis) which typically weighs 60 lbs and the Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) that usually weigh between 29 to 77 lbs.
A beaver’s home is called a lodge. These little dome-shaped houses are made from woven sticks, grass, moss and mud. They can be up to 8 feet wide and 3 feet high.
Beavers don’t eat fish, they eat leaves, roots and bark from aspens, willows, maples and poplar trees. They also eat aquatic plants.
They are very social animals and live in groups called colonies. A lodge is often the home for a monogamous couple of beavers along with their young and the yearlings born the year before.
They mate during the winter, from January to March and don’t hibernate. The Eurasian beaver has a gestation period of around 60 to 128 days and American beavers have a gestation period of around 105 to 107 days.
Beaver projects near me
With so many benefits to our eco-system, beavers are slowly but surely being reintroduced into the UK with a number of projects run by the Wildlife Trust. You can find out more about the current projects here, plus find your local project too.
You can even visit some of these sites too for a fun family day out to try and spot the signs that beavers have been there. Supporting these sites is just one of the many ways you can help the environment.