Ernst Zehle

Following in his father's footsteps, Ernst Zehle began training as an artist at an early age and attended the Akademie der Künste in Berlin, studying under Paul Meyerheim and Woldemar Friedrich.

In the words of Ludwig Heck, the director of the Berlin Zoo, Zehle quickly made a name for himself as one of the most important animal painters of his time.

[2] Zehle would work primarily as an oil painter, and would expand his repertoire over time to include casting and sculpting in plaster and bronze.

Although Zehle lived and worked in Berlin, from a young age he would spend a significant amount of time in the wilderness around Lödderitz, Germany, and it was there he would develop an affinity towards nature.

It was around this time that Zehle was observed at his work by the German Crown Princes Wilhelm and Joachim, as well as the Duke of Anhalt Frederick II.

[2] During the First World War Zehle cast a series of commemorative medallions to celebrate the return of German submarine Deutschland following its successful penetration of the British naval blockade in the summer of 1916.

These were dedicated to Lord Cecil, the British Minister responsible for the blockade, and featured an image of a beaver swimming under a net with the phrase "DON'T GO OVER!

[5] Zehle also produced works for, and was featured in, a number of hunting magazines such as Der Heger, Wild und Hund, and Deutsche Jaeger Zeitung.

Zehle worked with other environmentalists, such as his close friend Max Behr 'The Beaver Father'[2] to raise awareness of environmental issues, and provide actionable solutions to them.