Beavers in Scotland - FAQ

Beavers (the Eurasian beaver) are native Scottish animals that live in and around freshwater such as rivers, streams and lochs. 

They are the second largest rodent in the world. They are semiaquatic animals with waterproof outer fur, webbed back feet and a large, flat tail which acts like a rudder when swimming. They can hold their breath under water for up to 15 minutes. 

An adult beaver is longer than 1m, up to 0.5m in height, and weighs over 20kg. 

Beavers live in freshwater such as rivers, streams and lochs. But they can travel via saltwater.  

Beavers build ‘lodges’ to live in with underwater entrances and exits, or burrows which may not be visible from above. They also build dams to create deep water ponds to protect themselves and gain safe access to food resources. They feel safest in water.  

They use logs, sticks, mud, stones and vegetation as building materials. 

Beavers are entirely herbivores, eating inner bark of trees as well as shoots, leaves and roots.  

They have large, very strong teeth which they use to fell trees for food and building.

Beavers don’t breed a lot. They have one litter of kits a year, usually born in May. A pair of beavers will have an average of three kits per year which usually emerge from the burrow in June or July.   

Beavers live in family groups typically of two to five animals but sometimes up to 10. 

Young beavers, called kits, will stay with their parents until they are two or three years old. They’re usually born in late spring or early summer around May time and can swim 24 hours after birth. 

As beavers are territorial animals and strongly defend their territory, there will be a limit to the number of beavers found in one area of water. The size of the population will also be controlled by the availability of suitable habitats. 

Beavers were common in Scotland for thousands of years until they were hunted to extinction about 400 years ago. 

Beavers are now back in Scotland and are a legally protected species.

Beavers began to be reintroduced to Scotland through a planned trial in Knapdale Forest, Argyll in 2009. Around this time, beavers were also confirmed in Perthshire due to accidental or illegal release. 

In 2022, Scotland’s Beaver Strategy was published supporting a vision of beaver restoration, allowing translocations (movements from one area to another) while at the same time managing any negative impacts. 

Between 2023 and 2025, more than 150 beavers have been released to the wild including releases to Loch Lomond, the Forth catchment, the Cairngorms National Park, Knapdale, Tayside, the Trossachs and the Beauly catchment. 

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  

Beavers have been given legally protected species status across several European countries, including Scotland.  

 This aims to protect and restore their populations to a ‘favourable conservation status’ as part of wider protections of endangered, vulnerable and valuable species and habitats. 

 They are known as a ‘keystone species’ because their presence and activities have many benefits for other wildlife, plants and habitats.  

As they are wild animals, no individual or organisation is responsible for beavers. 

The Scottish Beaver Advisory Group, which is made up of a wide range of partner organisations, guides delivery of Scotland's Beaver Strategy. This sets out actions for the beaver population being actively expanded into appropriate areas, maximising the benefits of beavers while minimising negative impacts. 

Responsibility for managing beaver impacts is shared by many organisations and communities that manage land, water resources, and assets. 

NatureScot has a particular role in licensing and supporting mitigation. Any beaver release to the wild requires a licence from NatureScot. 

Beavers can be hard to see.  You are more likely to see the signs of beaver activities such as dams and felled trees, than to see beavers themselves. This is because they are mainly active at night.   

The most likely time of day to spot beavers is at dawn or dusk. 

There are beaver populations in Knapdale in Argyll, Glen Affric, Cairngorms National Park and Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park. 

Argyll Beaver Centre is a visitor centre in Argyll offering guided walks and events.

Beavers have many benefits for climate and nature. 

They are considered a ‘keystone species’ because their presence and activities have many benefits for other wildlife, plants and habitats. 

They are also 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 providing tourism business opportunities. 

Beavers fell trees for building material as well as bark for food. They prefer trees with soft wood such as willow, birch, alder, aspen, ash, poplar and hazel, but what they will eat is relative to what is available.  

Beavers and riverside woodlands lived together for thousands of years. Their current appearance has been changed by the absence of beavers. Native trees are adapted to live with beavers and if felled most will regrow, with the tree’s root system helping to strengthen riverbanks.  

It also opens up woodland canopy, allowing more light to reach the ground, enabling the regeneration of vegetation, increasing the diversity of plants and improving feeding opportunities for other wildlife. 

Beavers build dams to create deep water ponds to protect themselves. They feel safest in water. They also build ‘lodges’ to live in with underwater entrances and exits, or burrows which may not be visible from above. Beavers also build dams to create safe access to larger areas of habitat for feeding. 

Beavers mostly look for food and building materials close to the water’s edge (within around 20m or so). 

While beavers bring benefits to land and the environment, in some situations they can have negative impacts such as damaging property and infrastructure, causing problems for land management or other important species. Beavers are strong animals and they can be persistent. 

Common impacts include:  

Many of these impacts have potential cost implications for land managers if land used for agriculture is affected, or they need to install mitigation measures. 

Free advice is available from NatureScot to help manage beaver impacts. In some cases, funding may be available to support mitigation works or projects that trial new mitigation approaches.

There are several ways to manage the impacts of beavers, but it’s important to choose the right approach for each location and situation to avoid further problems.  

It’s important to remember that beavers are a legally protected species. This means there are very specific rules around removal of beavers or their dams. 

When beavers became a protected species in Scotland, a hierarchy for beaver management was put in place. This follows these steps: 

If mitigation measures are in place, it is important not to tamper with these as this can create further or prolonged issues and you may be committing an offence. 

Anyone experiencing negative impacts caused by beavers for the first time should seek advice.