Ciaran Shaffrey discusses how the beaver’s extinction in Britain was closely linked to land enclosure, drainage and extraction, following earlier hunting for fur that drove frontiers to North America, devastating beaver populations there. With rewilding moves now seeing their reintroduction as landscape engineers, beavers offer controversial responses to the Anthropocene.
Museum of the Anthropocene: The Beaver
In Spring 2023 a beaver kit was born on the River Glaven in North Norfolk, the first birth in the area for more than 500 years. The story of the beaver, its extinction in Britain and its return helps illustrate the story of the Anthropocene and humanity’s relationship with nature.
The European beaver, a large, herbivorous, semi-aquatic rodent, was once found across Europe with a population in the millions. Their fossil record in Britain dates back at least a million years before any humans. Despite this long, established presence, by the 20th century their European population had fallen to as low as 1200. What does their extinction, and subsequent comeback, tell us about the Anthropocene?
The extinction of the beaver was closely linked to two main things – resource extraction and control over land. Beginning on a large scale in the 14th century, beavers were hunted for their thick, water-resistant pelts, which were useful in hats and other clothing. The start of Western fashion is often dated to this time, and beaver pelt was just one item that increased in consumption, driving ‘commodity frontiers’ to new locations in North America, with devastating consequences for beaver populations.
At a similar time, British technological development enabled the enclosure and drainage of vast amounts of marsh (including in Norfolk), turning it from a perceived ‘wasteland’ into productive farmland. Beaver habitat was destroyed in the process and its ecosystem role replaced with industrial drains, dams and canals. The last beaver in Britain likely lived in the 17th century, and then they were all gone, an early victim of the Anthropocene, its consumerism and desire for control.
The beaver disappeared from conversation in Britain until the beginning of the 21st century, when the idea of ‘rewilding’ began to take off. Rewilding involves restoring wilderness and returning our ecosystems to a pre-human state, including through species re-introduction. In many ways, it seeks to undo the impact of the Anthropocene.
Beavers are known as ecosystem engineers for a reason. They chop down trees, dig burrows, construct dams and flood areas of land. Through their actions, they create a more diverse wetland landscape, reduce flash flood risk and store carbon. Their advocates (mainly conservation groups, but also some farmers and land-owners) see them as a perfect way to help reduce human impacts on our rivers, and opinion polls suggest widespread public support.
Their critics (including many farmers and anglers) see this as misguided. Many argue that introducing chaos into our ecosystems only hurts them. The reintroduction of beaver is an example of ‘weirding’ – through ecosystem engineering, beavers alter traditional English farming landscapes in a way that is unfamiliar to those that now live there. In a landscape that is already completely controlled and cultivated by humans, it is natural that any introduction of chaos is resisted. Of course, reintroducing beavers is not a natural process at all — while they may act of their own accord, they require monitoring and control by humans at every step of the process.
But does it matter if species reintroduction is not a natural process in itself, if it can help improve our ecosystems? Instead of focussing on bringing back perfect wilderness, rewilders often now take an open-ended approach, one that is centred on restoring ecological processes instead of narrow species targets. Can we ever fully turn back the clock and eliminate the impact of the Anthropocene? Perhaps, by admitting that this is impossible, the next stage of the Anthropocene could build a different and better future, and beaver reintroductions could play just a small part in that process.
Notes
The beaver was contributed by Ciaran Shaffrey.
Ciaran says: “Taking part in the Museum of the Anthropocene and focussing in on the beaver helped me understand the rewilding debate and the challenges facing us in restoring UK ecosystems. I hope to be able to explore that further in future as I plan a career in conservation.”