When Brussels uncovered portions of its Senne River north of the city center in 2021, it was inviting nature back in, but no one expected a beaver to take up the invitation.
But in the area where trees and other vegetation are reclaiming the river banks, a beaver has taken up residence: Apparently, if you unbuild it, they will come. The beaver, who shyly appears in the photo above from a Brussels Environment monitoring camera, is living only blocks from a major shopping center.
Beavers disappeared from Belgium in the 19th century, hunted to extinction for their fur, meat and musk; efforts to reintroduce them have been successful in Belgium’s rivers, but this is the first known presence in an urban area. The Senne was largely covered over 150 years ago to contain its polluted waters as a sewer and allow more urban development. With the advent of modern sewage treatment, outer parts of the river have been returned to daylight.
