For the first time in over two millennia, a wild beaver has been observed on Falster, sparking great interest among researchers and nature enthusiasts. The beaver, believed to have swum all the way from Northern Germany across the Baltic Sea, was first spotted by some children on a playground in Nykøbing Falster. Ejgil Andersen, a clerk at the Environmental Protection Agency, explains that this is a unique event as it is the first naturally immigrated beaver in Denmark in such a long time.
“It’s quite impressive that it managed to swim between 35 and 40 kilometers over the sea to reach Denmark,” he says. After the initial sighting at Gedser Odde, the beaver traveled about 20 kilometers to Nykøbing Falster. It is assumed that the beaver is a male, seeking a new territory and mate. “Beavers are very territorial, and when the young mature, they have to leave their parents’ territory and find their own,” Andersen explains.
The beaver is currently in the Aqua Zoo in Silkeborg, where it is being examined for any diseases before it can possibly be released back into nature. “If it’s healthy and a native European beaver, then it should be released back into nature as soon as possible,” Andersen says.
It is uncertain if more beavers will swim from Germany to Denmark in the future. “This is the first time it has happened in 2500 years, so it’s hard to predict,” says Andersen. He adds that the European beaver population has significantly grown since the 1990s when the species was near extinction, and today the population counts over a million.
In Denmark, we have between 200 and 300 beavers, mainly in Jutland, after beavers were reintroduced in West Jutland in 1999 and at Arresø in North Zealand in 2009. These reintroductions were part of efforts to restore the beaver population in Europe.