An investigation has been launched after a pregnant beaver was found shot dead on a riverbank.
The Scottish SPCA said the animal endured “significant unnecessary suffering” before its death.
Since May 1 it has been illegal to kill beavers or destroy established dams and lodges in Scotland without a licence as they now have European Protected Species status.
The beaver’s body was found on a riverbank between Crieff and Comrie in Perthshire around April 23/24.
READ MORE: UN report finds 'a million species of plants and animals at risk of extinction'
A Scottish SPCA chief inspector, who cannot be named due to his undercover work, said: “We can confirm we are investigating a report of a deceased pregnant beaver which had been killed in a manner that caused significant unnecessary suffering.
“Legislation to protect beavers was put in place on 1 May and outlines that as a way of minimising the impact on land use in some areas, the culling of beavers can be carried out by licensed and trained persons using humane methods which avoid unnecessary suffering and gives due regard to animal welfare.
“The beaver was shot and could be proven to have suffered significantly before being killed.
“The legislation states that all attempts should be made to protect the entire family group and avoid lethal control during pregnancy or kit dependency period.
“We want to ensure the welfare of beavers in the wild and any dependent young they may have.”
READ MORE: Beavers become protected species but farmers are less than thrilled
The Scottish SPCA said beavers are a “fascinating species” capable of the intricate engineering of dams and they can have a positive impact on their surrounding environment and ecosystem.
The organisation said it will be investigating all reports of the killing of beavers where welfare has been compromised.
It urged anyone with information to phone the confidential animal helpline on 03000 999 999.
Beavers disappeared from Scotland more than 400 years ago due to human persecution but a project to reintroduce them began in 2009.
There are currently around 450 beavers in Scotland in two separate populations, in Tayside and mid-Argyll.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel