One of the beavers with kit. Photo© Steve Gardner

Baby beavers have been spotted in a remote Scottish forest where a trial breeding programme is taking place.

The youngsters, known as kits, have been seen in the Knapdale Forest, north of Lochgilphead in Argyll, site of the Scottish Beaver Trial, a collaboration between the Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland to reintroduce the animals, which were once native to Britain before they were hunted to extinction.

Experts have estimated the kits’ age at eight weeks.

Christian Robstad, the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s beaver field officer, said: “Seeing the trial’s newborn beaver kits was really amazing. This is a huge achievement for the project and for conservation in the UK.

“It’s often difficult to tell if wild beavers are pregnant especially as they are elusive and largely nocturnal animals, but with our adult female beavers at two sites known to be in peak condition, there was a real possibility that kits could follow.

“Increasingly in the last few weeks, staff and volunteers have seen more evidence that there were young around and tracking activities were stepped up. After weeks of patient observation, we were finally rewarded with not just one kit being spotted but a second kit from a different family group as well.

“The first emerged as part of a ‘family outing’ with its parents and older sister close by to offer additional protection.  It kept close to the edge of the loch and called out to its family for reassurance while it began to learn to forage for food.”

Simon Jones, the Scottish Wildlife Trust’s Scottish Beaver Trial project manager, added: “Receiving confirmation of the presence of at least two beaver kits this year in Knapdale is a fantastic step forward for the Scottish Beaver Trial as we can now begin to see how a small reintroduced population starts to naturally establish itself in the wild.

“Both these beaver families are real trial success stories, having settled into Knapdale very well.  Both have built their own lodge and one family has had great success building a dam to access better food supplies. This has created a magnificent new area of wetland in which wildlife is now flourishing in.

“As beaver kits are very small, shy and look very similar to one another, there is a chance that even more kits have been born this year. We will be tracking our animals closely and hope to determine the exact number of kits produced as part of the trial soon. This task will be made easier for us as the kits get older and more confident about emerging from the lodge and foraging for food on their own.”

Minister for Environment Roseanna Cunningham said:  “It’s exciting to see these beavers thriving in the Knapdale Forest and producing beaver kits so soon after their reintroduction.

“We were hoping that this would happen and I’m looking forward to watching the progress of the beaver families over the coming years.

“This is a small but significant step for the Scottish Beaver Trial.”

The kits are currently about the size of a large guinea pig. Weighing about one pound at birth, they are born with a full coat of fur, their eyes open and the ability to swim. Older kits within the family may help care for and defend the younger ones but when they reach about two years old, they will leave the group in search of their own territory.

The exact location of the beaver lodges is being kept secret to protect the animals from being disturbed.

More pictures of the kits can be found on the Scottish Wildlife Trust website.