Finally.... we got beaver!
I'm really pleased to announce that finally, we have resident beavers in our forestry portfolio.
I say finally, because we have had a couple of attempts over the last few years, but they are now here, roaming freely across the floodplain. I can't tell you exactly where, because they are a protected species.
We already have a pretty much every other native forest mammal, including the elusive Scottish Wildcats and a richness of pine martens- both of which are amongst the rarest mammals in the UK.
For hard-core foresters, beavers are a mixed blessing, as they can cause some economic damage by felling trees and flooding areas of productive land.
However, this is more than outweighed by the profoundly positive impact on biodiversity, both on-site and in the wider catchment. Beaver dams provide habitats for fish, amphibians and dragon-flies and their coppicing can provide optimal habitat for species such as butterflies and song-birds- creating an 'oasis of biodiversity'.
Furthermore, their water management skills can hugely reduce water run-off and transform the quality of watercourses. Conservation authors such as Benedict MacDonald have championed this species and this birder (or rebirder?) lists at least a dozen benefits to birds on his Twitter account.
Beavers too are charismatic. After all, who can even say the word 'beaver' without breaking into a teethy smile.