National Trust releases two beavers into hidden valley on the South Downs to ‘boost wildlife’

A pair of beavers have been released into a large enclosure in a hidden valley on the flanks of the South Downs to build dams and boost wildlife, the National Trust said. The male and female beaver have been introduced into a 15-hectare (37-acre) fenced area in the West Sussex valley, which was gifted to the … Read more

Beavers build first dam in Exmoor for 400 years as they create wetland nine months after introduced

That’s dam clever! Beavers build their first water barrier in Exmoor for 400 years as they create ‘instant wetland’ just nine months after being introduced to slow the flow of the river The dam was constructed by the beavers at the Holnicote Estate near Minehead   Animals are first to be released into the wild … Read more

Boris Johnson gives his father Stanley BEAVERS as a present for his 80th birthday

A dam good gift: Boris Johnson gives his father Stanley BEAVERS as a present for his 80th birthday Boris Johnson gifted his father, Stanley, a group of beavers on his 80th birthday The Prime Minister and his siblings got a licence to allow beavers at his estate Beavers were native to Britain before excessive hunting … Read more

Beavers were cutting trees for food ‘before they started building dams’

Ancient Arctic beavers were cutting down trees for food four million years ago, long before they started building dams, a new study shows.  Scientists analysed bones of the extinct Dipoides beaver and plant fossils from Ellesmere Island in northern Canada to work out what the creatures ate.    Isotopic evidence indicates a diet of woody and … Read more

Beavers are massively changing landscapes in the Arctic, study says

Beavers are massively changing landscapes in the Arctic by building dams, which melt permanently frozen ground and release greenhouse gases, a new study says. Over the last few years, beavers have expanded into many tundra regions where they had never been seen before, due to an abundance of vegetation.  But they are also building more … Read more