Wildlife:

The Beaver — Nature’s Engineer

The beaver, a member of the rodent family, is a unique animal

capable of drastically changing the landscape to suit its needs. When

people and beavers live in the same environment, people often do not

like what the beaver does.

What does the beaver look like?

The prehistoric ancestor of the beaver lived

more than a million years

ago. These

creatures grew to

be 8 feet in

length and

weighed 700

pounds or

more. Today

beavers

average 40 to

50 pounds and are

4 to 5 feet long,

including their tails. Many years ago a few beavers weighing almost 100

pounds were caught by trappers. The beaver usually lives about 12 years. it

has soft, dense fur which is waterproof because of its oil content.

What adaptations do beavers have? Specific adaptations help

an animal to be well suited to its place (niche) in the forest. Beavers have ear

and nose valves which close when they swim underwater. They have large,

broad tails which help them swim. They can also slap their tails against the

water to warn other beavers of danger or to frighten other animals. Beavers’

back feet are webbed for swimming or supporting their heavy bodies in soft

river mud. The front feet like little hands hold food or logs used in

building their dams. Using their back feet, they spread oil from glands

located on their abdomen over their fur.

Internally, the beaver has large lungs to hold oxygen. This

characteristic lets them stay underwater up to 15 minutes. Beavers have

chisel-like teeth and strong jaws which can gnaw through a 6-inch tree

in 15 minutes! Their front teeth continue growing throughout their lives.

These creatures must chew on trees to keep their teeth from growing too

long. The tree-chewing action wears down the teeth.

Beavers make many sounds like churrs, mumbles, snorts and hisses

to get the attention of other beavers.