Beavers face cull if more introduced

KILLING beavers may become necessary to control their numbers if the animals were formally reintroduced to Scotland, according to a new report.

Beavers have been released in Knapdale, in Argyll, since May 2009, as part of a five-year scientific trial run by the Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland and hosted by Forestry Commission Scotland.

After an absence of more than 400 years, the effects of beavers on the environment are being closely monitored by Scottish Natural Heritage – which ordered the new report.