3/1/2026 | United Kingdom | general | ✓ Verified - bbc.com

Beaver pair released into wild 'are still together'

#Beavers #Cornwall Wildlife Trust #Species reintroduction #Camera traps #Beaver dam #Natural England #Nature restoration #Extinct species

📌 Key Takeaways

Beavers released by Cornwall Wildlife Trust spotted together on camera traps
Pair is building their first dam, showing signs of settling into their new habitat
Release is part of England's first fully-licensed beaver reintroduction program
Beavers became extinct in England over 400 years ago and are now being restored as part of nature conservation efforts

📖 Full Retelling

Two beavers released into the wild by Cornwall Wildlife Trust have been spotted together on camera traps at a nature reserve in mid-Cornwall within the Par and Fowey river catchment, marking a positive development in England's first fully-licensed beaver release program initiated in early February to restore the species that has been extinct in the wild for over 400 years. The Cornwall Wildlife Trust expressed excitement over the footage showing the pair staying together, as this was not guaranteed despite being released as a matched pair. The camera traps captured the beavers "hard at work" building their first dam, which the trust described as "another positive sign that they're settling into an area already." This beaver release was made possible under licenses issued by Natural England, which authorized releases at both the National Trust's Holnicote Estate in Exmoor, Somerset, and the Cornwall Wildlife Trust's chosen site. The trust released two pairs of beavers at their nature reserve in mid-Cornwall as part of efforts to restore England's biodiversity. Nature minister Mary Creagh highlighted that the return of beavers is a vital part of the government's "mission to protect and restore nature." Beavers became extinct from the wild in England more than 400 years ago due to hunting for their pelts, meat and glands, making their recent reintroduction a significant ecological milestone.

🏷️ Themes

Wildlife Conservation, Species Reintroduction, Ecosystem Restoration

📚 Related People & Topics

Beaver

Semiaquatic rodent

Beavers (genus Castor) are large semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (Castor canadensis) and the Eurasian beaver (C. fiber). Beavers are the second-largest living rodents, after capybaras, weighing up to 50 kg (110 lb).

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Cornwall Wildlife Trust

Wildlife conservation charity

The Cornwall Wildlife Trust (founded as the Cornwall Naturalists' Club) is a charitable organisation founded in 1962 that is concerned solely with Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It deals with the conservation and preservation of Cornwall's wildlife, geology and habitats managing over 50 nature r...

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Beaver dam

Dam constructed by beavers

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Camera trap

Camera triggered by motion

A camera trap is a camera that is automatically triggered by motion in its vicinity, like the presence of an animal or a human being. It is typically equipped with a motion sensor—usually a passive infrared (PIR) sensor or an active infrared (AIR) sensor using an infrared light beam. Camera traps ar...

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Species reintroduction

Wildlife conservation technique

Species reintroduction is the deliberate release of a species into the wild, from captivity or other areas where the organism is capable of survival. The goal of species reintroduction is to establish a healthy, genetically diverse, self-sustaining population to an area where it has been extirpated,...

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