Beavers Swipe Wildlife Webcam and Add it to Their Lodge
Michelle Milliken
Beavers gather a few things to build their lodges: sticks, twigs, rocks, mud, webcams... Wait, webcams? Well, some beavers in Scotland just did that.
Argaty Red Kites, a nature preserve and rewilding project in Doune, Scotland, is home to relocated beavers. There's a wildlife camera on site for monitoring the animals, and the preserve recently noticed that the view had changed substantially.
In a tweet, they said, "We were wondering why our Beaver Cam was showing nothing but sticks and mud... turns out the naughty beavers stole it to add to the roof of their lodge!"
They shared pictures of the beavers' new housing amenity, stacked atop a bunch of other sticks.
We were wondering why our Beaver Cam was showing nothing but sticks and mud… turns out the naughty beavers stole it to add to the roof of their lodge! @BeaverTrust @ScotsBeavers @james_nairne @emccandless89 @BrewsterKirsten @Nature_Scotland @skyeandfrisa #nature #beavers pic.twitter.com/uTTqwdtvLz
— Argaty Red Kites (@argatyredkites) February 8, 2023
User @castor_wheels pointed out that they should have expected something like this would happen, saying, "You mounted it on a perfectly good stick, can't blame them for taking advantage!"
Other users piped in, saying the beavers were clearly upgrading their home security, or maybe the tables had turned and they were monitoring the people.
The preserve says they've since retrieved and re-installed the camera, but they think they may end up switching out the wooden pole with a metal one so their electronics thieves aren't tempted to do it again.
The beavers were relocated to Argaty Red Kites just over a year ago in a multi-partner effort that included the charity Beaver Trust. In an Instagram post at the time, the preserve - which is a long-term family farm - said that the animals came from conflict areas and that it marked the first time there was an authorized and unenclosed release on private land in Scottish history.
Argaty has been in the Bowser family since 1916, and it's now on its sixth generation since then. The livestock farm launched the Argaty Red Kite project more than 20 years ago as part of a partnership with RSPB Scotland. The management of the red kites is helped along by a ranger and ecologist, as well as volunteers.
You can follow them on Instagram here.
