EXMOOR will see its first beavers for nearly 500 years when two pairs are introduced on to the National Trust’s Holnicote Estate next spring to help tackle flooding and boost wildlife.

Once a native of Britain but hunted to extinction in the 16th century, the Eurasian beavers will be the first to live on National Trust land.

They will move into two woodland enclosures at Holnicote of five and seven acres that lie alongside tributaries of the River Aller so that experts can assess their impact on the local ecology.

It is hoped that the beavers, which will come from a colony on Scotland’s River Tay, will help create a thriving habitat and increase the range of species and wildlife numbers.

The animals are rated a keystone species, meaning that they help manage the landscape, particularly by reducing soil erosion and flash flooding.

Under the plans, approved by Natural England, two more pairs of beavers will be introduced on another National Trust site on the South Downs.

National Trust lead ranger David Elliott said: “Beavers are nature’s engineers and can create remarkable wetland habitats that benefit a host of species including water voles, wildfowl, craneflies, water beetles and dragonflies. 

“These in turn help support breeding fish and insect eating birds such as spotted flycatchers.

“There are just a handful of sites in the British Isles that have beavers. This is a different way of managing sites for wildlife – a new approach, using a native animal as a tool.”

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