In the past few decades there have been over 200 beaver reintroduction projects to 25 European countries.

After their near extinction in the late 1800s, beavers have now been returned to all countries within the former range – with the exception of Portugal and Wales.

INCC has been working in partnership with North Wales Wildlife Trust and the Welsh Beaver Project (WBP). as part of their license application to NRW for the reintroduction of Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) to Wales.

Attempts to reintroduce beavers back to Wales have been ongoing since 2005. A number of catchments in Wales have been identified and assessed for their habitat availability and potential to support this keystone species.

Beaver on log: photo Allard Martinius

Most recently, the Dyfi catchment in Mid Wales has been identified as a potentially suitable location for a pilot beaver reintroduction.

To help the application, INCC has undertaken a detailed preliminary assessment of the Dyfi Catchment to see how suitable it would be to support beavers.

As with many catchments throughout Wales, the assessment (Parry 2019) identified numerous stretches of waterbody with sufficient habitat to support beavers.

Beaver dam in Scotland where beavers are now a protected species
Wild beaver