London to get beaver safaris as part of plan to return furry critters

Paradise Fields in Ealing will be the first public space in the capital to have beavers reintroduced as part of 'rewilding efforts'.

Plans to ‘rewild’ the capital will allow Londoners to see wild beavers on public land for the first time since the 1500s.

An alliance of conservationists are turning Paradise Fields, a 10-hectare wetland in Ealing, west London, into an ‘immersive beaver landscape’ set to open later this year.

The site will be initially closed to allow the first two rodents – one male and one female – to get to know each other free from prying eyes.

The animals, which were hunted to extinction in the UK, may be a rare sight at first due to their mostly nocturnal patterns.

But it’s hoped they will soon produce offspring, known as kits, who could breed with other wild populations after successful rewilding efforts in Kent and Oxfordshire.

A first attempt to reintroduce a pair of beavers in London last year failed after the male – named Justin Beaver – died, leaving his mate Signourney Beaver to fend for herself.

Enfield’s Forty Hill Farm, which welcomes visitors for a small fee, has reportedly found a new mate for Sigourney.

Ealing Wildlife Group says the beavers will turn their homes into a ‘more ecologically inclusive habitat’ allowing other troubled species such as water voles to thrive.

Dr Sean McCormack, a vet who chairs the group, said: ‘Many people assume beavers are a wilderness species, when in fact we’ve just forgotten how closely we used to live alongside them.

‘We’re so excited to study how beavers interact with an urban river catchment and, crucially, with urban communities.

‘Beavers are a keystone species, manipulating habitat to create biodiverse wetlands where many other species can thrive.

‘Their activities can help combat and adapt to impacts of climate change through carbon capture, reduce flood risk by slowing water flow in times of high rainfall and mitigate drought by holding more water on the land.’

The works on Paradise Fields are currently centred on a new fence around the habitat, which the beavers are trusted to make homely by themselves.

The office of London Mayor Sadiq Khan approved £40,000 of funding to be released for the project as part of £1 million in new rewilding funding pledged on Monday for World Rewilding Day.

Mr Khan said: ‘We are now facing dual climate and ecological emergencies worldwide, which further threaten our ability to survive on our planet.

‘Despite the harm inflicted on the natural world, we have the power to make amends, and I am committed to ensuring that London is at the vanguard of efforts to reverse the trends of declining biodiversity and the destruction of nature.

‘Rewilding allows nature to take the lead and is an exciting way to create healthier ecosystems and allow humans and wildlife to live together more harmoniously.’

A total of 116 hectares of land across London will benefit from rewilding projects including woodland restoration and a Pollinator Corridor in which bees can thrive.

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