Beavers Without Borders
Beaver re-introductions have been increasing across the UK over the past decade and there are now beavers living wild in Scotland & in enclosures in trials across England and Wales. However, they have not gone without their teething problems.
In 2020, award winning film-maker Nina Constable produced ‘Beavers Without Borders’ for Beaver Trust. A short documentary examining the numerous, positive effects beavers can have on our fragile eco-system.
Beavers: Why are they so important?
Nature’s architects, keystone species, engineers of our environment, these are pretty big claims to live up to, yet beavers really are all these things and more. To date we have lost 92% of our wetlands here in the U.K., as one of the most biodiverse habitats on the planet this is a devastating decline. However, our furry friends dedicate their existence to creating wetland habitat through the construction of dams and ponds, so their widespread re-introduction across the UK could have huge beneficial impacts on our natural environment.
Not only does having beavers back in our landscape here in the UK offer hope, it also marks a pivotal shift in our relationship towards nature and our environment; where we relinquish the need to control our surroundings and admit that maybe we don’t always know best. Sometimes, allowing nature to just do its thing could teach us a thing or two!
Aerial views of Loch Beinn a Mheadhoin, Glen Affric - ©James Shooter
The Making of “Beavers Without Borders”
When I was approached by Beaver Trust to make a short documentary about beaver re-introductions here in the UK, despite being in the middle of a pandemic, I jumped at the chance. As I generally work independently on film projects; writing, filming and editing myself, despite being under restrictions I could begin work on the film almost immediately - researching, writing & planning. When it got to the filming stage, I found that lockdown challenged me to work in a different way, to collaborate more and connect with people I might not have done beforehand.
Therefore, as lockdown eased, Sophie Pavelle (the documentaries presenter) and I embarked on a journey around the U.K., visiting sites where beavers have been re-introduced and speaking to key players in their re-introduction.
Cornwall’s first beavers enjoying a leafy snack at Woodland Valley Farm - ©Nina Constable
Locations
From Cornwall, through Devon and up into Scotland we visit beaver habitats in the far corners of the UK and meet biologists, anglers and key players in the restoration of beavers across Europe.
Beginning in Cornwall we meet Chris Jones, owner of Woodland Valley Farm and home of the Cornwall Beaver Project. We see how the site has developed since beavers were re-introduced three years ago and this site, where baseline data was taken a year before the beavers arrived, is a unique demonstration of the positive benefits beavers can have. Chris talks of the boost in biodiversity & the increased resilience of the land in times of both flooding and drought.
Nina filming Duncan Pepper angling on the Tay - ©Sophia Pavelle
Sophie and Chris in conversation at Woodland Valley Farm ©Nina Constable
Journeying up into Scotland we meet beaver ecologist Dr Roisin Campell palmer and angler Duncan Pepper. Beavers are now living wild in Scotland and it hasn’t gone without its teething problems, with beavers sometimes establishing themselves in areas they are not welcome. Roisin is working on the frontline of human/beaver interactions working out solutions that appease those impacted by beaver activity and encouraging translocation over culling.
Often negativity towards beavers is based upon misconceptions, one of the main misunderstandings is the belief that beavers eat fish and therefore the presence of beavers negatively impacts fish populations. However, beavers are strictly vegetarian, favouring foliage over fish. Having fished the lochs and rivers for years before beavers arrived in Scotland Duncan Pepper has first hand experience of their impact and he reveals that where there are beavers, there are more fish!
Salmon leaping, Scotland - ©Mat Larkin
We also look to Bavaria and speak with Gerhard Schwab who has been involved in beaver re-introductions in Europe for decades. Beaver re-introductions began in the 60’s in Bavaria and Gerhard walks us through what a future could look like here in Britain with beavers living wild in our landscape and rivers. That future looks green, healthy and beautiful with locally extinct species returning of their own volition to beaver created wetland habitats.
Finally we meet Derek Gow who has been instrumental in beaver re-introductions here in the UK who outlines why he believes beavers should be living wild in the UK and why this needs to be happening sooner rather than later.
Aerial beaver - ©Gemma Wearing
Beavers: The Solution, Not The Problem
Beavers can ruffle feathers. They are not shy and they announce their presence immediately. Whether it's the trademark teeth marks left by their iron clad incisors, the arrival of dams or the gradual felling of their favourite trees. It is this behaviour that can cause concern when this is land used for growing crops, but the positive impacts so far outweigh the negatives that it feels like a given beavers should be back living in our landscape.
There are multiple management measures that can mitigate for many of their impacts; River buffers, beaver deceivers, mesh guard or specialised paint on trees we would like to protect and translocation, as a last resort, are all measures that offer often simple solutions to the negative impacts beavers may incur. In the film we don’t shy away from the negatives, it was important for us to acknowledge them and to explore how we might help those on the blunt end of beaver behaviour.
Beaver at dusk - ©Nina Constable
Global Response to “Beavers Without Borders”
We were aware that there may be some negative responses to the film as beavers are not everyone’s best friend, but we were blown away by the reception. Heartened by it. And not just by the audience, by the people sharing the film online, the 1500 people that attended the online premier and the 30,000 people that have watched the film so far.
Beavers without Borders has gone on to win its first award in the last month and has been officially selected in a number of global film festivals which instigates hope in interest in British wildlife, so often overlooked.
As much as having beavers back in our landscape might signify an important shift in our attitudes towards nature, the response to the film feels like that shift may already be in motion. The fact that beavers returning to the UK holds environmental significance with people outside Britain underpins the importance of this story and the importance of re-wilding as a whole.
Beaver at home at the Cornwall Beaver Project ©Nina Constable
Beavers are a beacon of hope, an ally in a world buckling under the pressure of human activity. They are not a silver bullet. They will not fix our environment, but putting them back where they belong and always should have been is an important step in the restoration and recovery of our natural world.
I felt humbled that Beaver Trust entrusted me with telling such and important and timely story and as we are about to embark on another film project together this summer I cannot wait to get back out there with my camera exploring and capturing the incredible wildlife the UK has to offer and speaking with the people on the ground dedicated to it’s restoration and protection.
