London children can name two beaver kits born at Paradise Fields
The family released at Greenford in 2023 now has two young. Londoners ages 4 to 18 can suggest names until December 7.
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Two beaver kits born this year at Paradise Fields now need names, and London children get to offer them. BBC News reported on October 13, 2026, that anyone in London ages 4 to 18 can send a suggestion until December 7. The Ealing Beaver Project and the mayor's office will choose the winners. Entries go through Citizen Zoo.
A family of Eurasian beavers was released at the Greenford site in 2023, the first return to urban London in more than 400 years. Elliot Newton of Citizen Zoo and Sean McCormack described the kits for the BBC. The project is run by Citizen Zoo with Ealing Wildlife Group, Friends of Horsenden Hill, Ealing Council, and funding from the mayor's office. Backers say the beavers have created wetland, improved water quality, and made the site more resilient to flood and drought. Paradise Fields is free and open 24 hours. A naming contest does not measure how many more kits will be born. The wetland is the part neighbors can already walk.
For the classroom
BBC News reported on October 13, 2026, that two beaver kits were born this year at Paradise Fields in Greenford, west London. Eurasian beavers were released there in 2023, the first time they had lived in urban London in more than 400 years. Children in London ages 4 to 18 can suggest names until December 7, 2026. The Ealing Beaver Project and the mayor's office will pick the winners. People who back the beavers say the animals have built wetland and helped the land hold water in floods and dry spells. Paradise Fields is free and open all day and night.
- What does a beaver do to a stream that can help other animals?
- Why might a city ask children to name a wild animal that has just been born nearby?
- How long had it been since beavers lived in urban London before 2023?
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