As beavers return to Britain, their presence becomes a gnawing problem

Tentatively at first, the two young beavers poked their heads out of straw-filled metal cages and waddled to the edge of a pond before gracefully sliding into the water.

"I can't quite believe what I am seeing," said an emotional Jonah Tosney, a river ecologist who along with 20 other spectators came out on a crisp, clear morning recently to a wetland area in Norfolk, southeast England.

They were there to witness what they believe amounts to the rebirth of a species.

"I'm just absolutely delighted," Tosney said in a whisper, as those around him snapped photos to capture the moment.

For Canadians, the gasps of joy at the sight of beavers in a pond swimming and gnawing and doing what beavers do might seem a bit exaggerated. 

Even if most Canadians rarely see the industrious creatures in the wild, they remain high in the public consciousness, with their likenesses enshrined on money, clothes and national emblems. 

In the U.K., however, the return of the beaver is being hailed as a success for a policy known as rewilding — essentially repairing damaged ecosystems and creating more natural, diverse habitats.