Beavers and woodland creation: Jon Burgess awarded the James Cup
Considered the best article to appear in the 2025 issues of the QJF, Jon Burgess was awarded the James Cup by QJF Commissioning Editor, Dr Gary Kerr and RFS President Alison Field.
We are delighted to announce that the 2025 James Cup has been awarded to Jon Burgess for his paper ‘Woodland creation in the presence of beavers’, which appeared in the July 2025 issue of the Quarterly Journal of Forestry (QJF, 119(3): 158-165).
The technical paper explores how the presence of beavers will impact the delivery of woodland creation and offers practical guidance for the management of woods where beavers are present.
Judges commented that this “very current and timely article” sets out “a really useful framework of guidance and risk management to woodland creation and establishment in the presence of beavers” with a “highly pragmatic approach”.
On receiving the good news, Jon commented: “I am delighted to have been awarded the James Cup for my article; it is such a huge honour to be recognised in this way by the RFS. I thought that sharing my experiences and research into beavers would be helpful to other foresters, and the enthusiastic feedback I have received has made it such a rewarding experience. I need to offer thanks to all those who encouraged and contributed during the preparation and writing.
In second place was ‘Species, genes and epigenetics: how dimensions of diversity interact for forest resilience’ by Stuart Smith et al. (QJF, 119(4): 241-248).
The technical paper covers the many dimensions of diversity, from species diversity to genetic diversity and epigenetic effects. It explores current knowledge on these dimensions of diversity as well as known and potential interactions.
Third place was given to ‘The importance of visual surveys in tree health surveillance and the role of public reporting’ by Nathan Brown et al. (QJF, 119(4): 234-240).
The James Cup is awarded each year to the author or authors of an article that, in the opinion of a panel of judges drawn from the RFS membership, was the best to appear in the journal in the preceding year. RFS members can re-read every QJF article dating back to 1986 by logging in to the Members Area of the RFS website.
