Loading ...UK Bred Beavers, First for 400 Years
I was delighted to read that the UK have their first British born beavers for over 400 years.
What an absolute delight to see the photo of on a dozen young European beaver kits born on British soil.
During the 16th century UK beavers were hunted to extinction, their throat glands being used for supposed medicinal purposes.
They were born on the Lower Mill Estate near Cirencester, Gloucestershire, a luxury housing development owned by Jeremy Paxton who brought 3 pairs of beavers to the area in 2005 in the hope that they would breed.
The beavers were released at Flagham Fen Lake and whilst rumours abounded about beaver kits being spotted until now there were no photos. Mr Paxton then hired a professional photographer to attempt to capture the beaver kits on film.
Estate spokesman Alistair Bankier said: “We are very excited – these are European beavers and not as aggressive as their American counterparts. People who live around the estate began to see the kits so we asked a professional wildlife photographer to camp out to get proof.
“It is difficult to spot them – you need to be there between 4am and 6am to capture images of the beavers. If they see humans that’s it – they go back underwater. We’ve managed to get 20 minutes of footage. It shows the kits frolicking together with the mother beaver, swimming and dragging wood.
“Everyone is very proud that these kits have been born as conservation is part of the identity of the estate. There are over 6,000 protected wildlife species at Lower Mill and the beavers are just part of it.”
Whilst the price tags for the homes on the complex are well above my humble means I would like to congratulate Mr Paxton for his efforts in returning beavers to our wild, let us hope the breeding continues.
Leave a Reply