Holnicote beaver named after England Lioness Mary Earps

Members of the public voted for the name 'Earps' in a social media poll

A beaver has been named after England goalkeeper, Mary Earps, in honour of the team reaching the World Cup final.

Earps is the sixth kit born at the Paddocks enclosure at the Holnicote Estate near Exmoor.

The public voted for the name in a poll on The National Trust's social media.

A ranger from the estate said: "We decided to continue with the sporting theme for the Paddocks family due to the success of the Women's football team in reaching the World Cup final."

Mary Earps has been a star for England in the Women's World Cup

The beaver kit Earps is not the only creature there to have a footballing link.

Earps is the younger sibling of Rashford, named after Manchester United player Marcus Rashford.

Rashford was the first beaver born on Exmoor for 400 years in 2021.

Twins Russo and Toone - named after Lionesses Alessia Russo and Ella Toone - followed in summer 2022.

National Trust ranger Jack Siviter said: "We are particularly pleased for first time parents, Lily and Bulrush"

Beavers are described as "eco-engineers" due to their ability to make positive changes to the landscape around them.

They make family lodges and dams, which then creates ponds and channels.

These filter and slow the flow of water, and the felling of trees in the surrounding areas encourage ground flora such as marsh marigold to bloom.

National Trust ranger Jack Siviter said: "Over the next few months, we'll be able to track the development of the youngsters and how they start to help us with our conservation work, in particular building more resilience into our landscapes to help mitigate the consequences of extreme weather."

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