• Disrupting Power Since 2015
  • Donate
  • Login
Monday, May 12, 2025
  • Login
  • Register
Canary
MEDIA THAT DISRUPTS
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion
No Result
View All Result
MANAGE SUBSCRIPTION
SUPPORT
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion
No Result
View All Result
Canary
No Result
View All Result

Beaver numbers in Scotland more than double in three years, study shows

The Canary by The Canary
10 August 2021
in News, UK
Reading Time: 2 mins read
165 7
A A
3
Home UK News
319
SHARES
2.5k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

The number of beavers in Scotland has more than doubled in the last three years, according to a new study.

Bouncing back

NatureScot, the country’s public body for natural heritage, found about 1,000 of the animals now reside in territories which have also more than doubled to 251. The range of where these territories are has grown too, from Glen Isla to Dundee and Stirling, Forfar to Crianlarich – and likely to expand into Loch Lomond in the future.

Robbie Kernahan, NatureScot director of sustainable growth, said:

Wildlife is declining in Scotland so this extensive survey, which reveals an increasing beaver population, is great news for nature in Scotland.

Beavers play a vital role in creating and restoring wetlands where other species can thrive, reducing downstream flooding and improving water quality. We also hope that many people in Scotland will enjoy spotting these sometimes elusive, but fascinating, animals as they become more common.

Beavers are nature’s supreme water engineers, but we know they may cause severe problems in some areas, particularly for crops on prime agricultural land and for important infrastructure like road drains or railway lines.

This is reflected in the number of cases where mitigation measures were needed, such as fencing and flow devices or dam removal, as well as in the number of beavers which had to be trapped and moved or controlled under licence this past year.

Dam
A beaver dam found during the survey (Roisin Campbell-Palmer/PA)

Surveying the land

The survey was carried out last winter and is said to be the most comprehensive and authoritative survey of beaver numbers and their range ever conducted in Britain. Experienced surveyors searched for signs of beavers on foot and by canoe, finding 13,204 confirmed signs such as burrows, dams, lodges, scent mounds, canal digging, and tree and crop feeding.

NatureScot worked with Scotland’s “foremost beaver specialist” Dr Roisin Campbell-Palmer and experts at the University of Exeter to conduct the survey.

Campbell-Palmer said:

Beavers are recognised as ecosystem engineers with important biodiversity benefits, though some impacts can be challenging alongside certain land-use practices.

This survey will hopefully provide valuable information to land managers and policy makers seeking to maximise the benefits and minimise the conflicts associated with the return of beavers to our rivers.

The full 2020-21 survey can be found online.

Share128Tweet80
Previous Post

Gavin Williamson claims he can’t remember his his A-level grades

Next Post

We can’t carry on like this if we want to save the planet

Next Post
Greece wildfires climate crisis

We can't carry on like this if we want to save the planet

A mobile phone displaying the Twitter logo

Twitter issues update on response to Euro 2020 final racist abuse

Gavin Williamson school

A-Level results are higher this year. Let's stop relying on high stakes tests.

Prince Andrew

Andrew’s legal team ‘stonewalling’ lawyers of his accuser

Assange is ‘an innocent man accused of practising journalism’

Assange is ‘an innocent man accused of practising journalism’

Please login to join discussion
DWP PIP cuts will hit over one million people aged 50 and over
Analysis

DWP PIP cuts will hit one million people aged 50 and over, new FOI reveals

by Steve Topple
11 May 2025
Fire at Moss Landing Battery site, CA North Yorkshire
Analysis

North Yorkshire battery site sparks fury – but is there an alternative?

by HG
11 May 2025
Labour government under further pressure over the ECHR - this time, from 60 organisations
News

Labour government under further pressure over the ECHR – this time, from 60 organisations

by The Canary
11 May 2025
UK arms exports to Israel
News

David Lammy may have misled parliament over UK arms exports to Israel

by The Canary
11 May 2025
Farage has had a good week
Opinion

#SwindonsSundaySermon: Farage and the Temu Union Jack brigade had the perfect week – at our expense

by Rachael Swindon
11 May 2025
  • Contact
  • About & FAQ
  • Get our Daily News Email
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy

The Canary
PO Box 71199
LONDON
SE20 9EX

Canary Media Ltd – registered in England. Company registration number 09788095.

For guest posting, contact [email protected]

For other enquiries, contact: [email protected]

The Canary is owned and run by independent journalists and volunteers, NOT offshore billionaires.

You can write for us, or support us by making a regular or one-off donation.

© Canary Media Ltd 2024, all rights reserved | Website by Monster | Hosted by Krystal | Privacy Settings

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion

© 2023 Canary - Worker's co-op.

Before you go, have you seen...?

DWP PIP cuts will hit over one million people aged 50 and over
Analysis
Steve Topple

DWP PIP cuts will hit one million people aged 50 and over, new FOI reveals

Fire at Moss Landing Battery site, CA North Yorkshire
Analysis
HG

North Yorkshire battery site sparks fury – but is there an alternative?

Labour government under further pressure over the ECHR - this time, from 60 organisations
News
The Canary

Labour government under further pressure over the ECHR – this time, from 60 organisations

UK arms exports to Israel
News
The Canary

David Lammy may have misled parliament over UK arms exports to Israel

ADVERTISEMENT
Lifestyle
Nathan Spears

Why More People Are Seeking Legal Advice When Separating

Travel
Nathan Spears

Hungary Vignette Adventures: Discovering Hidden Gems by Car

How Social Media Affects the Mental Health of Young Adults Today
Tech
The Canary

How Social Media Affects the Mental Health of Young Adults Today