Beavers successfully relocated to Loch Lomond

Beavers successfully relocated to Loch Lomond - RSPB

beaver kits next to a carry container — Beaver kits exploring - Beaver Trust

A family of beavers have been successfully moved to Loch Lomond marking another major milestone for the species’ return in Scotland

RSPB Scotland translocated a family group of seven beavers to the Loch Lomond National Nature Reserve with a helping hand from Lorna Slater, Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity.

Loch Lomond is only the third location in Scotland where a beaver translocation has taken place since the reintroduction trial at Knapdale in 2009.

The pair of beavers and their five young offspring (two yearlings and three kits) were moved from an area in Tayside as part of plans to speed up the return of beavers to the Loch Lomond National Nature Reserve, which is jointly managed by RSPB Scotland, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority and NatureScot. 

RSPB Scotland, the nature conservation charity leading this effort, anticipates that the beavers which are “nature’s engineers” will create and enhance habitats and boost biodiversity in the NNR helping to address both the climate and nature emergencies.

Both the beavers and habitat, on the RSPB Scotland nature reserve, will now be closely monitored by local staff to see how they settle in and begin to modify the wetland. This includes remote monitoring of water levels, using camera traps to directly monitor beavers and mapping field signs of beaver activity.

Hopes are high among nature lovers and conservationists that this latest translocation will mark the start of further beaver restoration as part of Scotland’s Beaver Strategy, with further colonisation of this and other suitable catchments. This would greatly assist the Scottish Government policy to support the expansion of the beaver population across Scotland and help address both the climate and nature emergencies.

Biodiversity Minister Lorna Slater said: “It’s been a delight to witness the translocation of this family of beavers to their new home in the Loch Lomond Nature Reserve. This once lost species were driven to extinction in Scotland, but are becoming an established part of our natural environment once again. Through translocation projects like this one, beavers are slowly being reintroduced across the country and helping to promote biodiversity and restore nature.”