School pupils enjoy nature reserve visit after naming Shrewsbury's two new resident beavers
Pupils from a Shrewsbury primary school have been visiting one of the town's nature reserves after naming two of its new rodent residents.
The Coleham Primary School pupils were given the chance to visit the Old River Bed in Shrewsbury - the new home of two Eurasian beavers - after winning the competition to name the animals.
Children from local schools were invited to submit names in the competition run by the Shropshire Wildlife Trust (SWT) and Shrewsbury Town Council, which were then voted on by the public.
One of the year groups at Coleham chose the names Beryl and Bertie, which won the public vote.
To celebrate, the year group were invited to visit the Old River Bed enclosure to learn more about the beavers they helped to name.
The class was split into smaller groups, with each group taking it in turns to visit the enclosure.
During the visit they got to learn all about Beryl and Bertie from Alicia Leow-Dyke, Welsh Beaver Project officer from the North Wales Wildlife Trust.
Alicia was on hand to point out signs of beaver activity and answer any questions the children had.
At the same time, Ellie Larkham from SWT was running outdoor education sessions for the rest of the year group, at a nearby green space.
The groups rotated and repeated until all the children had a chance to visit the enclosure.
