Runaway beaver leaves trail of destruction

[Still Waters]

An escaped love-lorn beaver has left a trail of destruction, felling trees in his wake as he hunts for a mate.

The giant rodent clambered over an electric fence at his reserve and fled more than 20 miles across a county border to set up home in the River Tamar in Corwall.

Now the lonely male - nicknamed 'Igor' by locals - has gnawed his way through a swathe of trees on a one-and-a-half mile stretch of a river bank in a desperate bid to build the perfect dam to attract a female.

The six stone animal fled his enclosure from a farm in Lifton, Devon, six weeks ago along with two females - which were soon recaptured.

But the rampant herbivore is still searching for a mate and has made it to the picturesque village of Gunnislake.

Igor is trying to build the perfect dam to woo the ladies back, but cannot form his love-nest because the River Tamar is too wide and fast-flowing for one beaver to tame.

Locals began to notice fallen trees bearing the markings of beaver teeth - but experts were baffled as the animals have been extinct in England for 500 years.

But the errant beaver's owner, Derek Gow, came forward to reveal the identity of the culprit and is now laying a series of humane traps to try and recapture it.

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[sarah snow]

This is just down the road from where I am staying for Christmas/New Year holidays. How funny is that