Animal conservationist accuses neighbour of ‘kidnapping’ his beavers in countryside feud – ‘It’s a lot of codswallop!’
A former Army major in Cornwall has accused his neighbour of “kidnapping” his licensed beaver family after they escaped from their enclosure.
Merlin Hanbury-Tenison, also an author, actor and wellness retreat owner, claims his neighbours on the edge of Bodmin Moor are refusing to return two adult beavers and their three kits – sparking a furious row as a result.
The beavers had previously escaped five times since their introduction in 2019.
Hanbury-Tenison began his beaver project in 2018 after securing multiple licences from Natural England, including permits for species reintroduction and trapping.
The project required extensive preparations, including construction of a specially designed five-acre enclosure with underground fencing and complex grille systems.
The first beaver, named Sigourney, arrived from the River Tay, followed by a male called Jean Claude Van Dam.
The pair successfully bred, producing twins nicknamed Beavie Nicks and Beavie Wonder, followed by a third kit named Chewbarka.
But the row exploded when Hanbury-Tenison drove to his neighbour’s property after receiving his escaped beavers’ coordinates.
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He was stopped at a cattle grid marking the property boundary and denied entry.
“Usually people were happy for me to come and retrieve my wards,” Hanbury-Tenison wrote in The Spectator. “We’d have a cup of tea and a chat about how wonderful beavers were.”
When he explained his legal obligation to recapture the beavers, his neighbour responded: “That sounds like a ‘you’ problem.”
The neighbour, who is also involved in rewilding efforts, told CornwallLive he was advised by the Cornwall-based Beaver Trust, Cornwall Wildlife Trust and Natural England to leave the protected species alone.
He said: “To make it clear, we didn’t kidnap any wild animals on his land. That would have meant trespassing on his property, stealing the animals and then holding him to ransom.
“That’s the meaning of kidnapping. The beavers escaped – six times – as he admitted himself.
“We haven’t committed any crime. We haven’t done anything illegal. To say we kidnapped his beavers is simply not true. It’s a lot of codswallop!”
Natural England confirmed that beaver enclosure licences require secure fencing, monitoring and maintenance, along with obligations to inform them of escapes and recapture fugitive beavers.
The agency said it would consider external factors outside licensees’ control when assessing condition breaches.
A spokesman clarified: “Beavers are considered wild animals and are also protected as European Protected Species.”
They added that landowners must comply with legislation protecting beavers from harm under The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017.