The State should draw on the expertise of the European beaver to restore river habitats and save the wild salmon, according to a Co Waterford fishery owner.
Nicholas Grubb, who owns the Dromana fishery on the river Blackwater, says recent trials in Scotland show the beaver’s potential for improving river habitats.
“This would be far more economic than continuing to pour vast sums into scientific research while wild salmon stocks continue to decline,” he says.
Mr Grubb points out that the beaver’s well-known dam-building skills and its ability to fell trees improves riverine habitats for other species.
By clearing trees, it allows for more light and creates small ponds where fish, frogs and other species can thrive.
It’s been pointed out that I use this photo very often, but I can’t help it. This is a surprising article about a UK angler. Given all the trouble the salmon fishermen caused in Devon, VERY surprising. I can’t say I disagree in any way, but the last paragraph sheds some light on the unexpected story.
There is no evidence that the European beaver ever reached Ireland, but its introduction here could be strictly controlled, Mr Grubb says.
Ahh, the cynic in me says that anyone who wants beavers this much has never HAD beavers at all. Which is generally regarded as true. No beavers in Ireland. Ever. I can’t quite bring myself to believe this, because the distance between the northern most part of england and Ireland is only around 15 miles. In fact there has even been talk over the years about building a bridge or a tunnel across the Irish sea. Do you think no beaver ever explored for half a night’s distance? Really?
Plus there’s this linguistic puzzle:
Ancient people names in Ireland
Gearóid Mac Niocaill’s book Ireland before the Vikings (Gill and Macmillan, 1972) has an interesting passage on the names adopted on the island during the 4th, 5th and early 6th centuries. He refers to “a mosaic of peoples” who are “dimly perceptible” amid the settlements and political changes he has been discussing, and whose names appear in various forms:
ending in –raige (‘the people of’), or as Dál (‘the share of’) orCorco (perhaps ‘seed’) plus a second element, or as a collective noun ending in –ne. Some contain animal names, such as Artraige ‘bear-people’, Osraige ‘deer-people’, Grecraige ‘horse-people’, Dartraige ‘calf-people’, Sordraige ‘boar-people’; others, such as the Ciarraige, the Dubraige and Odraige, have a colour (ciar ‘black’, dub also ‘black’, odor‘dun’) as the first element; others, such as the Cerdraige, seem to have an occupational term as the first element.
A similar list appears in Macalister’s Ireland in Pre-Celtic Times, which mentions Corcu Bibuir ‘beaver people’, Corcu Cuilend ‘puppy people’, Corcu Oirce ‘pig people’, Corcu Tened, ‘fire people’; Bibraige ‘beaver people’, Boccraige ‘goat people’, Breccrige ‘trout people’, Cattraige ‘cat people’, Cechtrige ‘plough people’, and Cnamrige ‘bone people’.
Begging the question, why were their bibuir people in Ireland if there were no bibuir?
Oooh and some late breaking cheer from our friend BK who reminded me to look at the calendar.
