Beavers reintroduced to a Scottish rainforest 15 years ago have potentially created ideal habitats for the endangered water voles to thrive.

Once abundant in Scotland, water voles are now among the country’s most threatened native animals.

The beavers’ dam-building in Knapdale, Argyll and Bute, since 2009 has transformed the area into a complex boundary between water and land, suitable for voles to dig burrows hidden from predatory mink.

John Taylor, the west region area wildlife manager for Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS), which manages the Knapdale forests, said: “Aside from flooding a few places, the biggest impact we’ve seen from the beavers is creating a new habitat along watercourses. They’ve increased what we call edge habitat: instead of a harsh change from water to land, the edges along the burns and lochs are softened and seasonally flooded.

“This more complex boundary between water and land could be excellent for water voles.”

He added: “One of water voles’ main predators is mink. If you have a very simple burn or loch, it’s easy for mink to find the water voles’ burrows – and the female mink is small enough to get right inside. The Knapdale beavers have blurred the boundaries between water and land, which means more places for water voles to hide and hopefully flourish.”

Pete Creech, a wildlife ranger at the Heart of Argyll Wildlife Organisation, praised beavers for their superior wetland engineering compared to humans.

“The human creation of wetlands is an extremely costly undertaking and, frankly, we’re not as good at it as beavers.” He added that water voles were themselves “eco-engineers” that could in turn create conditions for wildflowers to flourish.

“Water voles and beavers are complementary species and, in their own way, the voles are as busy eco-engineers as their bigger cousins. Their nibbling of sedges and grasses provides space for a greater diversity of wildflowers, while their burrowing shifts soil nutrients to the surface, increasing their accessibility for plant growth.”

Beavers, hunted to extinction in the 16th century, were reintroduced to create these beneficial habitats.

 

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