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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mike Richardson" data-source="post: 1550393" data-attributes="member: 43216">It’s a sad fact, but many species are only here because they (or their habitat) are managed by us. It could be argued that several species serve no significant ecological role and are only conserved for aesthetic and sentimental reasons. For example, why do conservationists spend hundreds of thousands of pounds managing reedbeds for Bittern and Bearded Tit? In addition, many deer species are managed to prevent excessive numbers causing ecological damage (providing jobs and revenue in stalking fees). Beavers are no different from deer in this respect.The bottom line for me is while many birds can re-colonise the UK by themselves (once the habitat has been restored/created), Beaver stand absolutely no chance of re-colonising our shores without a reintroduction programme. Furthermore, they only became extinct in the first place through persecution and over hunting - not through lack of suitable habitat.</blockquote>