Earlier in the week NatureScot published its 2023 beaver management report showing 77 beavers had been trapped and translocated to sites across Scotland and England, 8 beaver had been lethally controlled and 122 dams were removed. 

We congratulate all those involved bringing about the many translocations, particularly within Scotland. The beaver kill figures, if true, show a huge improvement on previous years. It seems likely, however, that there is considerable under-reporting.

Many questions remain:

• 8 beavers shot under license is still 8 too many – and how many more were shot without a license?
• Why are there still so many lethal licenses and are they being used? If the figure of 8 beavers shot under license is correct then will most licenses be removed?
• What is meant by “ serious damage to agriculture” and how is this assessed?

It must be born in mind that agriculture in former floodplains is now increasingly vulnerable to the more frequent and extreme flooding brought by climate change.

We now need to focus on two things: one is to encourage more land owners, private, public, community & NGO, to take beavers, so they can be spread out throughout Scotland’s river catchments. To achieve this, consultation needs to be simplified and supported.

Without this, how many beaver translocations within Scotland will be possible next year?

The second priority is transforming the countryside to make agriculture more resilient in the face of climate change. In this way , more beavers can be incorporated into intensively farmed landscapes in wildlife corridors reducing the need for translocation but also stripping pollutants, enhancing the water holding capacity of the land and the biodiversity of our countryside.

All of this needs to be addressed urgently.