Beavers poised for return to Britain

INTERESTING news from across the water – it looks as though Britain is about to gain a new species of mammal.

Beavers are to be re-introduced into Scotland later this month.

These large, water-loving rodents were once found in Britain but were hunted to extinction in the late Middle Ages. A Scottish chronicler mentions that they were common around Lough Ness in 1526. They were probably once found in Ireland also, though I can’t find any specific references. If any readers know of old Irish manuscripts that mention beavers I’d be very interested to hear from them.