The Scottish Beaver Trial team has released a new male beaver to partner a lone female as part of the five-year trial reintroduction of beavers to Knapdale Forest in Mid-Argyll. The male, who was captured in Norway by colleagues at Telemark University College, brings the number of resident wild beavers in Scotland to 12 (including two recently born kits).

The Trial, which is a partnership project between the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), the Scottish Wildlife Trust and host partner Forestry Commission Scotland, aims to determine how beavers will prosper in Scottish habitats and to assess their effect on the current Scottish environment by monitoring them over the five-year trial period. 

The two-year old male was released on Tuesday (14 September 2010) afternoon by project staff at the loch where the lone female beaver has settled. Prior to release the immediate area was marked with the male’s scent to encourage the female to welcome the new arrival and to stimulate interest in her future mate. The male was released directly from his transportation crate on to the loch and project staff are now monitoring his movements closely. 

Present at the release and now hoping that romance will blossom was SBT’s Project Leader, Roisin Campbell-Palmer, who said:  “This male is at an age where he would naturally disperse from his family group in search of a breeding partner so we are really hopeful that this arranged introduction will be the start of a very happy relationship.

“Over the next few weeks we would hope that there will be clear signs of acceptance as the pair get to know each other. Although breeding won’t take place this year, we hope they will build a lodge together which would be a good sign that they intend to remain together and potentially breed.”

On a recent visit to the project site, RZSS’s patron, HRH The Princess Royal, was given an insight into the impact these once native mammals have already had on their local environment, from lodge building to dam creation.

Simon Jones, SBT Project Manager said:  “With the recent news that two of our beaver pairs have bred, we have high hopes that this new pairing will settle in, get on well and add to the beaver population in Knapdale, but we have no guarantees that the relationship will be smooth sailing. 

“Introducing a new beaver to another beaver’s established territory, even if it is that of one single female, could cause some disputes.  We hope, possibly after some tail slapping and signs of natural caution, our female will follow her breeding instincts and pair with the suitable male.

“We have already seen changes that the existing beavers have made on the forest and lochs of the area and by establishing a further breeding beaver pair we hope to see a true measure of their impact in coming years.”

The independent scientific monitoring of the Trial’s beavers is being undertaken by Scottish Natural Heritage, and it is their final report at the Trial’s conclusion, that will help to decide the long term future for beavers in Scotland. Twenty-five European countries have already reintroduced beavers back into the wild.  Beavers are a native species to the UK and were once a common sight before they were hunted to extinction by man in 16th century. Beavers are known as a keystone species; they bring many benefits to wetland environments and improve habitats for many other animals including invertebrates, birds and otters.
 

The male was released following permission granted by the Scottish Government that allowed a replacement beaver to join the lone female and create a new breeding pair after her previous partner died. Prior to release, the male underwent quarantine and an in-depth health assessment to ensure he was healthy, free of disease and fit for release. Having complied with all the necessary importation checks, he was transported from Edinburgh Zoo before being released into one of the four occupied lochs in Knapdale Forest.

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Notes to Editors
• Please note, in order to keep disturbance to a minimum, the exact location of the released male cannot be given.
• The Scottish Beaver Trial is a partnership project between the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, the Scottish Wildlife Trust and host Forestry Commission Scotland to undertake a time-limited trial reintroduction of the European beavers to Knapdale, Mid-Argyll. It is part of Scotland's Species Action Framework, which sets out a strategic approach to species management in Scotland. The Scottish Government has asked Scottish Natural Heritage to coordinate the independent scientific monitoring of the trial, reporting on whether the conditions of the licence are being fully addressed on the ground. For more information visit www.scottishbeavers.org.uk
• SNH is working with a number of independent organisations to carry out the monitoring work. They are Argyll and Bute Council, Argyll Fisheries Trust, Historic Scotland, British Dragonfly Society, Macaulay Land Use Research Institute, Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Oxford Wildlife Conservation Research Unit and University of Stirling. Each organisation is contributing resources towards the monitoring of the trial, along with SNH who is contributing £275,000. For information about the monitoring go to www.snh.gov.uk/scottishbeavertrial. 
• The Scottish Government approved the application of the trial reintroduction in May 2008. This followed a two-month long consultation period with local residents and key stakeholders. The results of this consultation showed that 73% of respondents were in favour of the trial reintroduction.
• Forestry Commission Scotland (FCS) serves as the Scottish Government's forestry directorate.  FCS is the host partner in the project and manages the Trial site at Knapdale. www.forestry.gov.uk/scotland.
• Edinburgh Zoo and Highland Wildlife Park are owned by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), a registered charity, number SC004064. RZSS was founded by visionary lawyer Thomas Gillespie. The Society was set up ‘to promote, facilitate and encourage the study of zoology and kindred subjects and to foster and develop amongst the people an interest in and knowledge of animal life’. RZSS has been involved in several successful species reintroduction programmes in the past. These include native species, such as the Canna mouse, as well as global initiatives including reintroducing the Socorro dove back to the Socorro Islands, off the Mexican coast. www.edinburghzoo.org.uk
• The Scottish Wildlife Trust is a registered charity. It is the largest voluntary body working for all the wildlife of Scotland, representing more than 35,000 members who care for wildlife and the environment. The Scottish Wildlife Trust seeks to raise public awareness of threatened habitats and species and manages over 120 wildlife reserves Scotland-wide. www.swt.org.uk
• Scottish Natural Heritage advises the Scottish Government on conserving, enjoying, understanding and sustainably using our natural heritage. For further information on SNH, please visit www.snh.gov.uk.
• Funding for the Scottish Beaver Trial has been gratefully received from Biffaward. 
• In 1997 Biffa Waste Services agreed to donate landfill tax credits to the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts (RSWT) to administer under the fund name Biffaward. Grants made from the fund currently amount to £100 million, supporting many worthwhile projects. Biffa Waste Services Limited is one of the largest single suppliers of waste management services in the UK. It collects, treats, recovers and disposes of municipal, commercial and industrial waste nationwide.  It is ultimately owned by a private equity consortium comprising Montagu Private Equity, Global Infrastructure Partners, Uberior Co-Investments Limited and other co-investors www.biffaward.org
• The project has also received financial support from a range of sources including the People’s Trust for Endangered Species, People’s Postcode Lottery, the John Ellerman Foundation and the Albert George & Nancy Caroline Youngman Trust