Photo · Sébastien Marro
Pierre-Alain Marro
From passion to mission
The story of an amateur photographer with a love of nature, whose encounter with the beaver led to the founding of BeaverWatch.
Photo · Sébastien Marro
The encounter that changed my life and the way I see it…
I have always been drawn to open spaces and to nature. Water has always been an element that drew me in! Rivers, water as a whole, took an important place in my life very early on; I have always found in them a refuge, a truth and a freedom.
In 1990, I bought my first film camera. It became my companion on the road and in the field, and I took it everywhere I went. Very quickly, photography became a passion that led me naturally toward wildlife photography. Watching ... waiting... staying out of sight... learning to read tracks: this practice taught me patience and respect for nature.
Over the years, another passion came to complete my way of seeing: astrophotography. Watching the night sky, contemplating galaxies, nebulae and stars, reminds me every time of the immensity of the Universe... but also of the extraordinary fragility of our planet and the good fortune of being able to live on it.
In the course of my many observations, whether by day or by night from a hide, I have learned that you must be patient for nature to reveal itself little by little, and that those moments which can be neither foreseen nor forced remain the most precious.
Nature asks only one thing of us in return: to take care of it. And when we finally agree to do so, it sometimes offers us its most beautiful secrets.
The encounter that changed everything
It was while doing research for my first website, Images du monde, dedicated to wildlife photography, that I came across the beaver by chance. Intrigued by its presence on the Venoge, I decided to go there. As soon as I arrived, I had the good fortune to watch one at length. At that moment, I was far from imagining that this encounter would turn my life upside down.
Fascinated by this discreet and intelligent animal, I first became involved as vice-president within the Pro Castor association, alongside Johny Bruni and his whole team. After it was dissolved in 2008, I went on following the beaver on my own, in the field.
I have learned that the finest moments are often the ones you do not expect!Pierre-Alain Marro
I consider every encounter a privilege. In some of those rare moments, I find myself leaving my camera in my bag, in the conviction that certain moments we are given are not to be captured.
The birth of BeaverWatch.
In 2009, the Conservation de la faune of the canton of Vaud offered me the mandate for beaver monitoring at cantonal level. I accepted, and founded the BeaverWatch association.
Joined by enthusiasts such as Pascal Falcy and Benno Strimer, we built a structure dedicated to protecting the species, to field monitoring and to the search for harmonious coexistence between the beaver and human activities. In 2010, BeaverWatch took over the cantonal beaver monitoring mandate and officially became a partner of the Service de la faune, today the Direction générale de l'environnement (DGE-BIODIV).
The journey in a few dates
- 1956 Maurice Blanchet and Robert Hainard reintroduce the first beavers in Switzerland.
- 2001 I join the Pro Castor association — where I become vice-president a year later.
- 2008 Pro Castor is dissolved; beaver monitoring continues, alone, in the field.
- 2009 BeaverWatch is founded.
- 2010 Takes over the cantonal monitoring mandate; BeaverWatch becomes official partner of the Service de la faune.
Our legacy.
On 19 November 1956, Maurice Blanchet and Robert Hainard reintroduced the first beavers in Switzerland. Without the persistence of many devoted individuals, it would no longer be possible to observe the beaver on our watercourses today. Through BeaverWatch, I therefore owed it to them to carry on that continuity.
In the silence of my hides, the beaver taught me to look at rivers differently. I realized that it creates favorable conditions for a multitude of species and so helps to preserve this balance, at times so fragile.
From now on, my goal remains unchanged: to understand the beaver even better and to contribute to a harmonious coexistence. Today more than ever, I am driven to defend it and to work at its side, because it is an incredible animal. It is a builder, an engineer of watercourses. It masters, it regulates, it creates new environments. It reveals our relationship with life, showing us how to work with nature rather than endlessly seeking to master it.
I would like to warmly thank all the members, friends, partners and enthusiasts who work at my side. It is thanks to your commitment and your determination that the beaver goes on populating our beautiful rivers and creating many environments favorable to biodiversity.
The equipment I use
For those who are interested, here is the gear that goes with me into the field, from daytime hides to night-time observation.
Canon EOS Ra
- Lens — Canon RF 200-800 mm f/6.3-9 IS USM
- Lens — Canon RF 70-200 mm f/2.8L IS USM
Canon EOS 90D
- Lens — Canon EF 70-200 mm f/2.8L IS III USM
- Lens — Canon RF 100-400 mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM
Pulsar Multispectral thermal binocular
- Symbion LRF DXR50 — 640 × 480 sensor
The story goes on in the field, on the banks of the rivers.
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