Tag Archives: beavers

It’s just not cricket: reactionary forces gather to challenge beavers’ right to stay where they belong.

In a rare piece of good news for the south-west’s environment, the government recently confirmed that beavers would be allowed to stay on the River Otter in Devon. Beavers were hunted to extinction in Britain about 400 years ago. Hunters … Continue reading

Posted in angling, Beavers, Natural England, NFU | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Put a Beaver in your River

Summer, nearly six years ago, and I was doing a lot of walking. That day, Chesil beach, with the long thin lake of the Fleet behind, was sunny and I found myself thoughtlessly kicking a large lump of peat. Peat? … Continue reading

Posted in Beavers | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Unicorns in Brexitland: Panto seasons starts early this year

What does Christmas mean to you? John Lewis adverts? An excuse for some retail therapy? Religion? Or Pantomimes? It’s a long time since I went to a Christmas pantomime, but they seem to continue to be very popular. This year, … Continue reading

Posted in Brexit, climate change, Defra, Michael Gove, Natural England | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Free the Beaver: Michael Gove officially endorses legal #Beaver releases into the English Countryside

Is there any comedy value to be extracted from the fact that on the day the Brexiteers capitulated (or were outmanoeuvred) on membership of the Single Market, leading Brexist Michael Gove chose to announce that Beavers would be released in … Continue reading

Posted in Beavers, Michael Gove | Tagged , | 10 Comments

Beavers – cute and cuddly?

Just in case anyone thought Beavers were cute and cuddly, this news piece from Canada should make you think again. Imagine the scenes in Ottery St Mary…..

Posted in Beavers, rewilding | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Invasive Plants caused muddled thinking

  The BBC picked up a story about “invasive plants” yesterday, but didn’t do a very good job of conveying its messages. The paper just published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences is from Chris Thomas’ group at … Continue reading

Posted in alien invasive species, Beavers, himalayan balsam, invasive species | Tagged , , , | 11 Comments

Beavers: Common Sense may have broken out at Defra

The Beavers of the River Otter in Devon have been under threat of being “rehomed” in a zoo, thanks to pressure from The Angling Trust (no beavers do not eat fish). This was partly due to paranoia that the beavers … Continue reading

Posted in angling, badgers, Beavers, bees, Defra, Liz Truss, Owen Paterson | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

How the Beaver got its name.

Following saturday’s blog on Beavers, I was curious to know how the Beaver got its name. Apparently it has a very long history. A long extinct language has been reconstructed from existing languages,  called Proto Indo European. This language is … Continue reading

Posted in Beavers, Uncategorized | Tagged | Leave a comment

Angling Trust calls for Beavers to be shot: Defra Evicts Beavers from Otter

As some of you may know  a Beaver family has been spotted on the River Otter in East Devon.  A lone Beaver was seen last Summer, and this year, it appears that there is a family. How did that happen? … Continue reading

Posted in angling, Beavers | Tagged , , , | 25 Comments

Dams and Dredging Update

Coincidentally, following Monday’s blog I received an email from Natural England yesterday. They informed me that   “A member of our Land Management Team has investigation the situation and we appreciate your concerns about the work undertaken.  The farmer was … Continue reading

Posted in agriculture, Beavers, deregulation, Dredging, ecosystem services, Environment Agency, environmental policy, farming, Floodplains, management, Natural England, regulatory reform | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments