A New Strategy For Scotland's Beavers

A translocated beaver swims by at Argaty Red Kites by Elliot McCandless

Today NatureScot, with support from the IUCN, have published Scotland’s Beaver Strategy for 2022 to 2045. The report which has support from over 50 different stakeholders outlines a positive and pragmatic vision for beavers in Scotland by 2045.

The 2045 vision for beavers in Scotland

The positive direction of travel outlined in the strategy follows an announcement last November that the Scottish Government intended to change its policy to actively promote translocations to support the expansion of the beaver population, to help them establish a presence in areas of Scotland outside their current range, beyond where natural expansion would be expected to reach in the short term.

Beaver Trust attended and contributed to the strategy workshops throughout, which were designed and facilitated by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) conservation planning specialist group, and welcomes the clear steer that conservation translocations will be used to promote the establishment and growth of more beaver populations across Scotland.

We continue to recognise that beavers can be a challenging species to live alongside in some areas but we hope that this new strategy will make a positive difference to co-existence on the ground.