PhD Studentship: Ecosystem Engineers: Can Beaver Wetlands Provide Resilience to the Hydrological Extremes of Flooding and Drought

Beavers are well known for their ecosystem engineering activities. Via the creation of structures such as dams, ponds and canals beavers can create extensive and complex wetlands. These wetlands have been shown to have a significant impact on hydrology, increasing water storage within the landscape and attenuating downstream flow regimes. This in turn has led to significant interest in whether beavers can act as a Nature-based Solution increasing resilience to the hydrological extremes of drought and flood.

There remains a lack of detailed understanding into the hydrological behaviour of beaver wetlands particular in terms of low flow conditions, water storage and groundwater dynamics. There also remains a need to improve representation of beaver wetland dynamics in modelling and geospatial upscaling approaches. There is a direct need for this information from policy makers seeking to incorporate beaver wetlands into management and policy.
 
Using a suite of approaches including hydrological monitoring, geospatial analysis and hydraulic models this PhD will seek to gain novel understanding of the mechanisms by which beaver engineering could increase the hydrological resilience of our landscapes. This PhD will address the following questions.

1) Quantify the hydrological performance of beaver wetlands in terms of high flow, low flow, surface water storage and groundwater dynamics.
2) Can modelling and geospatial frameworks be used to upscale our understanding of beaver hydrological impacts. I.e. under future beaver population and climate scenarios can beaver wetlands have a significant impact addressing the hydrological extremes of drought and flood.
 
This PhD will be supported by a research group that has pioneered beaver reintroduction and Nature-based Solutions research within Great Britain and undertaken in partnership with the Environment Agency, contributing directly to the ambitions of the 25 year environment plan. This partnership will offer extensive training opportunities, industry application and direct pathways to impact.

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