Get to know nature’s engineers this International Beaver Day

Did you know that 7th April is International Beaver Day? These marvellous mammals are a keystone species, meaning that they have a significant impact on the ecosystem around them.

Beavers are nature’s engineers and can create natural solutions to some of the environment's biggest problems:

Flooding

They reduce flooding by building dams, easing pressure downstream by slowing the flow of water upstream.

Drought

Their dams help with drought by storing water upstream. This significantly reduces the impact of higher summer temperatures on surrounding habitats, by being a source of water for land managers and wildlife.

Plant biodiversity

Beaver activity can boost plant diversity by as much as 33%. By gnawing down trees to create their dams, beavers coppice the woods around them, encouraging new growth among light-seeking plants.

Encouraging more wildlife

They help increase the abundance and diversity of all species. For example, the deep ponds beaver dams create by holding back water provide new habitats. Meanwhile, the wetlands they encourage are a haven for birdlife and the debris from their constant building work attracts a host of invertebrates, a vital part of the food chain.

Since October 2022, beavers have been officially recognised as a native species in England and a European protected species. Having this protected status makes it an offence to harm beavers or their habitat without a license, and classification as a native species means that measures previously available to ‘control’ beavers as a non-native species no longer apply.

This is great news for these extraordinary animals who have the power to do so much good for wetlands across the country.

Here in Avon, a Natural England report published in March found that the wild beaver population is even bigger than we first thought, following Avon Wildlife Trust helping to discover a family of these incredible creatures living along with River Avon in 2021.

Surveys were conducted during January – March 2022 on canoe and by foot, covering approximately 280km of the River Avon and its tributaries.

Based on the number of beavers signs and territories they found, it’s estimated that there are around 50 beavers – not including their kits – living along this body of water!

It’s still early days, but this is such an exciting development for wildlife in Avon. We’re proud to be part of our local Beaver Management Group, looking at how we make the most of the benefits beavers will bring, while addressing the legitimate concerns that some people may have about how their land could be impacted.