A study promoted by Rewilding Apennines in the basins of the Pescara and Aterno rivers has confirmed the presence of at least four Eurasian beavers, which reached the central Apennines following unauthorised releases. The organisation is following this presence with scientific and ecological interest, treating it for what it is: a new phenomenon, to be studied methodically.
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Gnawed trunks, scored bark, a few branches stacked along the bank: to anyone who can read these signs, they are the unmistakable signature of the Eurasian beaver, Europe’s largest rodent. In Italy the species had gone extinct around 1600, hunted chiefly for its fur. Today it is once again present in the rivers of the central Apennines, neither through a spontaneous return nor an authorised reintroduction, but through unauthorised releases.
In March 2023, along the Aterno river in the province of L’Aquila, video footage documented the presence of the beaver in Abruzzo for the first time in roughly 500 years. The record came from a study co-authored by the CNR, which established, among other things, the irregular nature of the releases (we wrote about it here).
Rewilding Apennines was neither the author nor the promoter of those releases, but has made them the subject of rigorous investigation. The study documented the presence of at least four individuals, two pairs filmed by camera traps simultaneously at more than 45 kilometres’ distance from one another, between the Aterno Valley and the Peligna Valley.
«Rewilding Apennines regards the presence of the species with scientific and ecological interest: not as something to celebrate, but as a phenomenon to understand, whose effects, risks and possible conservation opportunities are to be assessed honestly. The beaver in the central Apennines is not the result of an initiative of ours, but a fact on the ground that we intend to know thoroughly», said Mario Cipollone, team leader of Rewilding Apennines.
The investigation was presented at the 3rd National Biodiversity Forum in Naples (19–21 May 2026) and at the 14th Congress of the Italian Mammalogical Society (3–5 June 2026, Bolzano, Eurac Research). The surveys, carried out by Biome srl, involved the University of Molise, the University of L’Aquila, the CNR-IRET, the University of Milano-Bicocca and several protected areas.
Among these, a central role was played by the Sorgenti del Pescara Regional Nature Reserve, on whose territory much of the recent observation is concentrated and which has a direct interest in understanding the origin, distribution and effects of the species in its own river environments. “From an ecological standpoint, the presence of the beaver plays a crucial role in keeping densely forested areas open, thereby increasing the diversification of the river ecosystem, as well as in reducing the depletion of wetlands and bodies of water thanks to the dams and other structures it typically builds.”, said Pierlisa Di Felice, Director of the Reserve. “Moreover, beyond the important ecological aspects and the monitoring of the beaver population, it becomes crucial and necessary to put in place a plan to raise people’s awareness of the species’ ecological role and of how to behave when crossing its habitat.”, the Director added.
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How the presence was documented
The investigation combined three complementary approaches. The first is the ground search for signs of presence, conducted between October and December 2025 along 81 transects distributed across the entire course of the Aterno and part of the Pescara basin, supplemented in some areas by surveying the banks by canoe. Four transects proved positive, along the middle course of the Aterno and in the Peligna plain. The gnawed trees, the bark stripping and the feeding traces tell of the use the animals have made of the landscape over time: some of this activity is recent, some dating back one or two years.
The second approach is camera trapping. The camera traps confirmed the presence of individuals in the area of the Sorgenti del Pescara, and a subsequent phase of targeted placement led to the study’s key finding.
The third is environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis, a technique that detects the presence of a species from the genetic traces dispersed in the water. The sampling, extended to 19 stations along the Pescara, Sangro and Liri rivers, has been completed. Laboratory analyses are under way and will help define the species’ distribution more precisely on a broader scale.
A concentrated presence, still to be deciphered
The picture that emerges is that of a contained, low-density population. The signs of recent activity are concentrated in an area around the springs of the Pescara and along the middle course of the Aterno. For now a small dam has been identified but no lodge, and the evidence gathered does not yet allow reproductive events to be confirmed.
A few years on from the first reports, then, the species is present but has not spread across a wide territory. As to why, several hypotheses remain open: a small number of founding animals, mortality, the less than optimal suitability of many river stretches, dispersal towards areas not yet surveyed.
An irregular origin, which must be monitored
The distinction between natural return and illegal release is not a formal detail. In several regions of central and northern Italy, from the 2000s onwards, the beaver has reappeared spontaneously; in the central Apennines, by contrast, it has been reintroduced irregularly. Unauthorised releases raise serious questions: from the provenance and health status of the animals to unplanned effects on the territory. For precisely this reason they need to be monitored methodically, rather than ignored or simply tolerated.
The ecological effects of an engineer species
The beaver is Europe’s largest rodent and an ecosystem engineer: by felling trees along the banks and building dams, it alters the course of rivers, creates wetlands and favours the biodiversity associated with them. Even a single individual leaves clear marks on riparian vegetation. Where conditions are suitable, its presence can help restore complexity and function to river environments often simplified by the straightening and concreting of their banks, one of the most widespread conditions found in the course of this very investigation.
“However,” notes the zoologist Mattia Iannella, head of the LACEMOD Laboratory at the MESVA Department of the University of L’Aquila, “translocation actions require precise studies aimed at assessing whether a territory possesses the specific characteristics that make it suitable to host a species. It is indeed important to measure the availability of the resources needed to meet the requirements of the ecological niche, understood not merely as a physical space, but as the set of resources, environmental conditions and ecological interactions a species needs. For this reason, every reintroduction or translocation should be prepared with careful preliminary studies, conducted with rigorous methods, and designed so as not to interfere with the flora and fauna already inhabiting the destination area.”
It is within this framework that Rewilding Apennines regards the presence of the species with scientific and ecological interest.
The next steps
Monitoring will continue on several fronts. “The next activities involve extending camera trapping in the areas known to be frequented by the species, so as to arrive at a more reliable estimate of the number of individuals, and applying the same techniques to other wetlands in the Pescara basin not yet surveyed, in order to intercept any dispersing animals. Completing the environmental DNA analyses will also provide a broader picture of the beaver’s distribution along the three sampled basins.” specified the biologist Simone Giovacchini, of Biome srl.
Outreach activities will also follow, to make the species better known to people and to learn to read its signs of presence in a river landscape that, thanks to the beaver, is more dynamic still.
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