A retired environmental scientist has captured footage of what is thought to be the first wild beaver living in Britain for over 500 years.

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The footage, taken on a farm in Devon, near Ottery St Mary on the River Otter, shows a beaver making its way through undergrowth, with a tree in the background that has been gnawed or broken.

Farmer David Lawrence enlisted the help of former environmental scientist Tom Buckley after his suspicions were aroused by damage to trees on his farm. Buckley said he recognised the gnaw-marks on trees as the work of a beaver, having seen similar marks in Canada, and decided to set up cameras on the farm.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Lawrence said of the Beaver "He's doing a bit of damage, but nothing major."

The last wild beavers in England are thought to have disappeared in the 12th Century. The animals were hunted to extinction in the rest of the UK over the following few centuries.

Though a small number of family groups were released in Scotland in 2009, and two beavers have lived at a secure location as part of a trial by Devon Wildlife Trust since 2011, the discovery of a wild beaver in Devon is a major wildlife event; Mr Lawrence and Mr Buckley said there are unsure whether the beaver is alone or whether the animal captured on film is part of a family.

Buckley's footage of the beaver is available via the BBC