More good press for beavers in the UK, with just a little bit of whinging from the farmers.

Beavers are back and thriving but not everyone is happy

They are an unusual, characterful species, and far from liked by all. Humans aside, beavers are the best loggers on the planet. Their dams, which they build to protectively raise water levels around their lodges upstream, enliven local ecology by coaxing in species which prefer slow-moving water, like dragonflies and frogs; in doing so, they can also alter the flow of rivers – always a contentious issue in land management.

So when, 10 years ago, a small group of beavers either escaped captivity or were illegally released, the colony they set up on western Scotland’s River Tay swiftly attracted the attention of naturalists and landowners alike. A few years later, in 2009, another set of beavers appeared, this time in the Knapdale Forest, Argyll, where Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) oversaw a government-sanctioned trial reintroduction, prompted by EU legislation supporting native species. Both colonies thrived.

At the heart of the problem is the beavers’ habit of damming drainage channels and burrowing into flood banks – actions that can lead to the destruction of crops in waterlogged fields. Some members of the National Union of Farmers Scotland have also argued that the rodents spread disease and negatively impact upon other species’ wellbeing. As a result, 21 Tayside beavers were shot in the years following their arrival – a legal act in the eyes of the law, as beavers are not a protected species, but one that led the SNH to bemoan the decision to reach for a gun rather than attempt to deter the creatures by other means.

One of those is “beaver deceivers” – pipes which, when thrust through a dam, change the depth of the water surrounding the lodge. It is a rudimentary technique, but it is sometimes enough to send the beavers packing. “They’re not the brightest of animals,” chuckles Dr Martin Gaywood of SNH.

And the scheme’s success is spurring others on: the Welsh Beaver Project recently announced a proposal that will support a repopulation in parts of Wales.

“A landscape with wild beavers re-established is wonderful to experience,” says the project’s coordinator, Adrian Lloyd Jones. Whether local farmers will share his enthusiasm remains to be seen.

Yes the farmers like to complain about beavers, though they love to plant things on that really rich soil beaver dams made for them. Too bad articles like these can’t also interview the dragonflies, or the salmon, or the river otters to see how they feel about the animals. It’s important to get every opinion, you know.

I was glum on Friday, but Saturday was beyond heartening. I had friends that marched in Florida, Atlanta, DC, Missouri, Austin, Wyoming and Colorado. Not to mention all over our own state blooming like pink flowers, including a local march in Walnut Creek that was really well attended. The next time you need cheering up you should really put on a pink pussy hat and should watch this a couple of times.