Megan McCubbin has addressed some of the backlash the latest series of BBC Springwatch has sparked.
While the 28-year-old and her stepdad Chris Packham have hosted the show together for a while, the latest edition, which concluded this week, seemed to get viewers talking.
McCubbin and Packham occasionally ruffle feathers by playing into innuendos in the series while showcasing live nature scenes from across the UK.
Last week, McCubbin faced criticism for her use of the phrase “beaver action” as the presenters tried to film live beavers in their natural habitats.
After co-host, Michaela Strachan asked viewers: “Would you prefer to see Chris and his flies, Iolo and his badgers or Megan and her beavers?” McCubbin asked a cameraman in Scotland: “Have we seen any beaver action?”
While some fans found the remarks amusing, others fumed it was a “family show”.
Following the response, McCubbin has addressed the criticism as she told The Mirror: “The whole beaver item, there was no intentional innuendo.
“I mean, just seeing that beaver live the other day, I [was] so excited. It was just great beaver action.
“You can’t rename an animal, it’s called what it’s called. You say the word beaver and people start giggling.
“I mean, it is the scientific name of an animal but people have fun with it and if it makes people laugh that’s all part of the fun!”
McCubbin has followed in step dad Chris Packham’s footsteps with her love of animals and nature
BBC
The zoologist went on to tell the publication: “I always loved wildlife. That was always part and parcel of growing up.
“I was always the kid that was late to class because I was picking up earthworms from the path if it rained because I didn’t want anyone to tread on them.
“And I always wanted to look after the wildlife that was locally around my school and around my home. So I was a bit nerdy with the wildlife!”
The latest instalment of the show also saw the presenter facing criticism, this time because of the focus on spiders during the show.
McCubbin has worked alongside Packham in several programmes
BBC
Some fumed “enough is enough” as they cringed over the content and its focus on the eight-legged arachnids.
It came as McCubbin was told by an expert: “One of the other spiders we saw earlier was the candy-striped spider, it is an amazing spider and there are two types of this spider in the UK. We know the one we have been looking at here because it is the only one that lives in Scotland.
“The one we saw earlier had a pale yellow colour, but the more iconic version has this red stripe across its abdomen, which is why it gets its name, the candy stripe spider.”
Impressed, McCubbin praised: “A beautiful spider with that bright red across its abdomen.”