Are you sitting down? Because this might come as a big SHOCK. But apparently all those years of ruthlessly hunting beavers affected their behavior. I know, get out! But apparently the scientists are saying what we’ve always known, and it greatly interests the BBC.

Beavers’ activity is still influenced by “ghosts” of long-gone predators, study suggests 

A new study suggests beavers are better adapted to diurnal – or daytime – activity, but switched to coming out at night and twilight to avoid hunter-gatherers.

Past persecution could have influenced beavers’ behaviour down through the generations.  The semi-aquatic rodents’ nocturnal activity pattern could be a persisting effect of the spectre of human hunters, who would have killed the mammals during the day thousands of years ago, according to scientists.

Scientists at the University of Antwerp in Belgium studied camera trap footage in the country’s Flanders region to find out if the the beavers had adapted their activity patterns to a predator-free environment.

But extensive footage revealed the cautious creatures continued to be mainly nocturnal and crepuscular (active at dusk and dawn).

The study, published in the journal Mammalian Biology, suggests this could be the legacy of a long period of persecution that began in the Pleistocene epoch (2.6 million – 11.7 thousand years ago), when hunter-gatherers would have used hand-held weapons and gone out in daytime, before the use of animal traps.

The new study points out beavers’ night-time activity pattern may not be optimal for the species. “First, their eyes are not particularly adapted to seeing in the dark,” Swinnen tells BBC Earth.

 “Second, when beavers would be active during the day which is warmer than the nights, they would lose less energy for thermoregulation, which is beneficial. Third, as a herbivore, their food is always present, so there is no reason to forage mostly during the night.”

Now if this doesn’t sound like news to you, you’re in the right place. I’ve been saying this ever since I read it hypothesized by Hope Ryden in Lily pond, which was written around 40 years ago. And she was informed by the writing of scientists of her time who were writing about earlier writing. The headline on this story should be Everything old is New again! And why on earth WOULDN’T our behavior affect them?

In a decade in Martinez we’ve changed how comfortable one particular family of beavers is around humans. Why wouldn’t 1000 years of aggression do the same for all of them?

It’s important to add that in large rich, safe habitats beavers STILL work in the daytime. Our own Lory watched several in Denali park in Alaska.  The area surely wasn’t without predators, wolf, grizzly and mountain lion to name a few. However their primary threat has always been of the bipedal variety, so they adapted their behavior accordingly. Even the fierce nocturnal wolverine, famously lured by beaver meat, was less threatening then humans. I guess because sometimes wolverines aren’t hungry.

But humans were always greedy.

Glorious photos from beaver friend Sylvie Meller this morning of the new generation in Devon. Enjoy.

Wild beavers growing up fast

The news that England’s only wild colony of beavers had given birth to kits was taken as proof that the creatures are ‘thriving’ by Devon Wildlife Trust (DWT) in June.

Now, pictures taken by photographer Sylvie Meller show the young beavers to be healthy and already feeding on riverbed vegetation.

Sylvie said: “They have grown already quite a bit, but are still tiny compared to their parents.

 “Seeing an adult beaver swimming, only its head would come out of the water. The younger the kits are, the more they are above the water.”

So wonderful and heart-breaking to see. I love the idea that despite all the bruhaha and legal machinations, the beaver family is just marching on. After all the media, and DEFRA, and being trapped and tested, the family is fine. Doing what beavers do. It’s fabulous that Sylvie is there to photograph them. Much better than night cams.

I can’t help think about four particular kits that we will never see grow up. I’m sure you can’t either.