flood plain

"This means that, in many cases, building design codes are not enforced, and construction happens in areas that could be prone to enhanced seismic risk, for example flood plains and steep slopes."

Water voles now roam the network of channels, streams, and ponds the beavers use to navigate the flood plain.

"I live in Herefordshire. We live on a flood plain, so flooding has always been part of life there," he said.

The team found that between around 11,500 and four thousand years ago, the Nile experienced significant valley incision, meaning the river cut down into its bed, creating deep channels and a narrower flood plain.

Seasonal downpours cause frequent landslides and floods in Indonesia, a chain of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or fertile flood plains.