Find more funding
There are many other organisations who may be offering funding that will help you, and our handy funding search tool brings them all together.
New resources to raise awareness of beavers in Scotland
Resources developed by the Scottish Beaver Advisory Group offer practical advice for anyone encountering beavers and their activities for the first time.
People in Scotland are being encouraged to learn more about beavers as populations continue to expand into new areas.
The Scottish Beaver Advisory Group (SBAG), which brings together a wide range of organisations, has published an information pack to support communities, land managers, businesses and wildlife enthusiasts to learn more about living with beavers.
Beavers were common in Scotland for thousands of years until they were hunted to extinction 400 years ago.
Since being reintroduced to Scotland, over the last few years the beaver population is growing and expanding to new areas.
Sarah Robinson, Scottish Wildlife Trust’s Director of Conservation and chair of the SBAG comms sub-group, said:
“Beavers have many benefits for climate and nature. They are known as ‘ecosystem engineers’ because their activities shape and create wetland areas that benefit many other animals and plants. They can also reduce flooding, improve water quality, and bring socio-economic benefits such as tourism business opportunities.
“With beavers expanding into new areas, more people may be encountering beavers and their activities for the first time. These resources provide a helpful introduction for individuals, communities and land managers to learn more.”
©Lorne Gill/SNH
Nadia Flaherty, Policy Adviser at Scottish Land & Estates, said:
“While beaver behaviours can bring many ecological benefits, there are some situations where beavers negatively impact land management, infrastructure or other species of conservation importance. As a result, their impacts need to be managed.
“With beavers back in Scotland and their numbers growing, it is important that we learn about them, how to live alongside them, but also how and when to manage and mitigate any negative impacts. The pack includes information on where to go for advice for anyone experiencing negative impacts associated with beavers for the first time.”
Jenny Bryce, NatureScot beaver team manager, said:
“The beaver population is growing and will continue to spread across Scotland. This is partly through planned releases to new suitable areas, as well as through natural expansion as young beavers grow up, leave their family units and start families of their own.
“So, now is a really good time to learn about these native animals and the benefits and impacts they can have. We hope that these resources will help raise awareness and understanding of beavers as we all learn to live alongside them again.”
The information pack can be found at: https://www.nature.scot/scottish-beaver-advisory-group-sbag-resources
