Evidence shows beavers are back on Forth

Gnawed tree stumps also point to rodents’ return to tributary rivers

Beavers are believed to have returned to the Forth and its Stirlingshire and Perthshire tributary rivers, the Teith and the Allan Water.

Tree stumps which appear to have been gnawed have been seen on the banks of the Allan Water near Bridge of Allan.

Evidence of the animals has also been seen on the same river near Cornton, Stirling.

Angler John Hunter, 70, who has been fishing on the Forth since he was 10, told the Stirling Observer: “I’m usually on the Forth every day fishing.

“I first noticed fallen trees a few weeks ago and the stumps. There had been rumours circulating among fishermen about beavers in the area for quite a while but this is the first time I have seen evidence with my own eyes.

“I’ve heard from fishermen there are beavers on the Forth and Teith further west.

“You can see that the trees have fallen after having been gnawed away. I’ve not seen a beaver yet, but this looks very much like the work of beavers to me.”

Hunted for their pelt and glandular oil, the beaver, Europe’s largest rodent, became extinct in Scotland in the 16th Century.

Eurasian beavers from Norway were reintroduced in 2009 and 2010 at Knapdale in Argyll as part of a Royal Scottish Zoological Society of Scotland and Scottish Wildlife Trust project.

There are also populations around the River Tay which could have been illegally released or escaped from captivity.

Estimates were reported in 2016 that there were more than 200 beavers living in the rivers and lochs of the Tay and Earn basins.

PPA. Picture: Beavers were reintroduced to Scotland in 2009.