Beaver fact file

Through our 'Tails' of UK Wildlife campaign, we’re lucky enough to partner with some incredible charities, including Wild North Trust. Yet we’re also getting to learn more about the amazing but vulnerable wildlife living right here, in the UK. 

Today’s species in the spotlight is the Eurasian beaver! Let’s uncover the story of this reintroduced species, with the help of Wild North Trust… 

What are they? 

Mammals.

Scientific name: Castor fiber

Where are they from? 

Beavers usually prefer to live in habitats like streams, rivers, and lakes next to woodland environments.

There are beaver reintroduction schemes across the UK, though currently, beavers are known to reside in the following locations:

• Knapdale Forest, Argyll.
• River Tay, Scotland.
• River Otter, Devon.

The beaver tends to craft dams to create ponds of deep, still water where they’ll usually build lodges – made of sticks and mud – to protect themselves from predators. 

Did you know? The landscapes crafted by beavers often support humans and wildlife, since their ‘canal systems’ can help to reduce downstream flooding and often clean water (by reducing silt build-up).

What's their average life span?

Around 7-8 years.

How big are they?

Head to tail: 1m+

Weight: 30kg+

What do they eat?

Contrary to popular belief, beavers don’t eat fish – they are herbivores. 

A beaver’s diet mainly consists of aquatic plants and grasses, as well as trees (especially bark, twigs, and leaves!).

Are they nocturnal?

Instead of being nocturnal, beavers are crepuscular (like cats!), which means they’re most active at dawn and dusk.

Do they mate for life?

Yes! Beavers will mate for life and often live in small family groups.

Around two to four babies (known as “kits” – how cute?!) are born to beaver pairs each year. Though beaver babies tend to stay with their parents for around two years before moving on to territories of their own. 

How many are there?

Sadly, beavers were extinct in the UK by the 16th century, due to being hunted for their fur, meat, and a secretion from their scent glands called ‘castoreum’. However, it’s believed there were just 1,200 individuals left in Europe by 1900.

After beavers were successfully reintroduced to Scotland in May 2009, other beaver reintroduction schemes soon followed – which has led to an estimated 400 individuals living across the UK!

Did you know? Beavers have now been formally recognised as a native species by the Scottish Government.

Three fun facts

Fact 1 – Beavers are nature’s ‘ecosystem engineers’, meaning that when they fell (take down) trees and build dams across waterways, they create brand-new environments for plants and wildlife. 

Fact 2 – The beaver is one of the largest members of the rodent family!

Fact 3 – It’s believed that beavers can hold their breath for up to an eye-watering 15 minutes while swimming underwater.

Actions you can take to help beavers

As well as supporting charities like Wild North Trust, who are working towards introducing beavers as a key species to halt damage to peat moors, you could help beavers by:

• Visiting sites like Knapdale Forest or joining in with a ‘beaver walk’ in Cornwall, where you could spot a beaver in their natural habitat.
• Encouraging local primary schools to work with charities to include wildlife-friendly learning activities as part of their curriculum. 
• Engage more closely with wildlife by becoming a volunteer for a local conservation charity. 

Learn more about Wild North Trust

We’d like to introduce you to Wild North Trust, who are working tirelessly to restore beaver populations. 

Based in northern England, Wild North Trust is dedicated to liberating land for nature; particularly through activities such as rewilding and conservation. Additionally, the charity is passionate about education, since that empowers everybody to take steps towards helping nature and wildlife to thrive.

In case you’d like to discover more ways to nurture the nature around you, check out our articles about wildlife recording projects and what you can safely feed UK wildlife.

Don’t forget to listen to our podcast episode, Giving a ‘dam’ about beavers, to discover how beavers play a vital role in helping our environment.