The beaver is North America's largest rodent and is built for
life in the water. Adults can be up to four feet long and weigh
over 60 pounds. The beaver has webbed hind feet and a large, flat,
nearly hairless tail. It uses its tail to help maintain its balance
when it is gnawing on trees. It will also slap its tail against the
water to signal danger or to warn away predators. The beaver has
short front legs with heavy claws. Their rear legs are longer and
their webbed feet help propel them through the water when they are
swimming. When the beaver is under water, its nose and ears close
up and a special membrane covers its eyes.
It has dark brown fur on its back and sides and lighter brown
fur on its chest and belly. The beaver waterproofs its thick fur by
coating it with castoreum, an oily secretion from its scent glands.
The beaver has a thick layer of fat under its skin that helps keep
it warm underwater. Beavers have long sharp upper and lower incisor
teeth that they use to cut into trees and woody vegetation. These
teeth grow throughout the beaver's life.
The beaver can be found throughout North America except for the
northern most parts of Canada, Florida the desert Southwest and
Mexico.
Beavers live near rivers, streams, ponds, small lakes and
marshes. They build lodges of sticks and mud on islands, on pond
banks or on lake shores. Beaver dams are domed-shaped and can be as
high as ten feet tall. Beaver lodges have one large central chamber
and one or two entrances. The floor of the chamber is a little bit
above the water and is usually covered in woodchips to absorb
moisture. A vent in the lodge lets in fresh air. Not all beavers
build lodges some beavers will build burrows in the banks of
rivers.
Most of the beaver's diet is made up of tree bark and cambium,
the soft tissue that grow under the bark of a tree. They especially
like the bark of willow, maple, birch, aspen, cottonwood, beech,
poplar, and alder trees. Beavers also eat other vegetation like
roots and buds and other water plants. The beaver has a specialized
digestive system that helps it digest tree bark.
Beavers mate for life, but if one mate dies, the other one will
find another mate. Beavers mate when they are about three years
old. Mating season runs from January and March in cold regions in
late November or December in the south. Gestation lasts about three
months and females have one litter of kits a year between April and
June. Before birth, the female will make a soft bed in the lodge.
The babies eyes are open when they are born and they can swim
within 24 hours of birth and will be exploring outside the lodge
with their parents within a few days. The young beavers are weaned
in about two weeks. Both the male and the female take care of the
young beavers. They will stay with their parents for two years.
Beavers can live to be 20 years old.
Beavers live in family groups or colonies. A colony is made up
of a breeding male and female beaver and their offspring. Beavers
are very territorial and will protect their lodges from other
beavers. They mark their territory by building piles of mud and
marking it with scent.
Beavers can have both a positive and a negative impact on the
environment. When beavers build dams, they create new wetland
environments for other species. These wetlands can help slow
erosion, raise the water table and help purify the water. Beavers
can play a major role in succession, When beavers abandon their
lodges and dams, aquatic plants will take over the pond and
eventually, shrubs and other plants will grow and the area will
become a meadow. The shrubs in the meadow will provide enough shade
to allow tree seedlings to grow, once the trees grow, they will
take over and the land will turn into a woodland area.
Beaver dams can also cause problems. Dams can slow the flow of
water in streams and cause silt to build up and some species can
loose habitat. Dams can also cause flooding in low lying areas.
This Cache Was Placed By A Proud Member
Of
Click on the Banner Above to Visit the
Website to find out more and join in on the fun, Everyone is
Welcome!