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The 'European Beaver' (''Castor fiber'') is an endangered aquatic mammal which was hunted almost to extinction in Europe, both for fur and for ''castoreum'', a secretion of its scent gland believed to have medicinal properties.^[1] However, this beaver is now being re-introduced throughout Europe. Several thousand live on the Elbe, the Rhone, the Danube and in parts of Scandinavia. They have been reintroduced in Bavaria and The Netherlands and are tending to spread to new locations.^[2] The beaver became extinct in Britain in the sixteenth century, but a new population of wild beavers have been confirmed in Scotland in recent months [1]. Also six European Beavers have been released into a lakeside area in Gloucestershire and allowed to roam wild.^[3]
In some areas with natural waterways, this beaver does not build a lodge with sticks and mud. Instead, it digs tunnels in banks and uses these tunnels as underwater entrances to their burrows. This beaver is usually heavier than its North American relative, weighing up to 35 kg (77 lbs).

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References

1. Database entry includes justification for why this species is near threatened
2. Europäischer Biber
3. Beavers in 'wild' after centuries