Behavior North American beaver

beaver lodge, ontario, canada



beaver dam, northern california, usa



beavers use rocks dams when mud , branches less available seen on bear creek, tributary truckee river, in alpine meadows, california.

beavers active @ night. excellent swimmers , may remain submerged 15 minutes. more vulnerable on land, tend remain in water as possible. use flat, scaly tail both signal danger slapping surface of water , location fat storage.

they construct homes, or lodges , out of sticks, twigs, rocks, , mud in lakes, streams, , tidal river deltas. these lodges may surrounded water, or touching land, including burrows dug river banks. beavers known building dams across streams , constructing lodges in artificial ponds form. when building in pond, beavers first make pile of sticks , eat out 1 or more underwater entrances , 2 platforms above water surface inside pile. first used drying off. towards winter, lodge plastered mud which, when freezes, has consistency of concrete. small air hole left in top of lodge.

the purpose of dam create deepwater refugia enabling beaver escape predators. when deep water present in lakes, rivers, or larger streams, beaver may dwell in bank burrow , bank lodge underwater entrance. beaver dam constructed using branches trees beavers cut down, rocks, grass, , mud. inner bark, twigs, shoots, , leaves of such trees important part of beaver s diet. trees cut down using strong incisor teeth. front paws used digging , carrying , placing materials. sound of running water dictates when , beaver builds dam. besides providing safe home beaver, beaver ponds provide habitat waterfowl, fish, , other aquatic animals. dams reduce soil erosion , can reduce flooding. however, beaver dams not permanent , depend on beavers continued presence maintenance. beavers concentrate on building , repairing dams in fall in preparation coming winter. in northern areas, not repair breaches in dam made otters, , breach dam , lower water level in pond create more breathing space under ice or easier access trees below dam. in 1988 study in alberta, canada, no beavers repaired sites of water loss during winter. of 178 sites of water loss, beavers repaired 78 when water opened, , did not repair 68. rest partially repaired.

beavers best known dam-building. maintain pond-habitat reacting sound of running water, , damming tree branches , mud. ecologists believed dam-building amazing feat of architectural planning, indicative of beaver s high intellect. theory tested when recording of running water played in field near beaver pond. despite fact on dry land, beaver covered tape player branches , mud. largest beaver dam 2,790 ft (850 m) in length—more half mile long—and discovered via satellite imagery in 2007. located on southern edge of wood buffalo national park in northern alberta , twice width of hoover dam spans 1,244 ft (379 m).

c. c. canadensis, feeding in winter

normally, purpose of dam provide water around lodges deep enough not freeze solid in winter. dams flood areas of surrounding forest, giving beaver safe access important food supply, leaves, buds, , inner bark of growing trees. prefer aspen , poplar, take birch, maple, willow, alder, black cherry, red oak, beech, ash, hornbeam, , pine , spruce. eat cattails, water lilies, , other aquatic vegetation, in spring (and contrary widespread belief, not eat fish). in areas pond freezes over, beavers collect food in late fall in form of tree branches, storing them under water (usually sticking sharp chewed base of branches mud on pond bottom), can accessed through winter. often, pile of food branches projects above pond , collects snow. insulates water below , keeps pond open @ location.

beavers mate life. young beaver kits typically remain parents 2 years.

brooklyn museum – american beaver – john j. audubon

common natural predators include coyotes, wolves, , mountain lions. beavers can particularly important food lone wolves. american black bears may prey on beavers if opportunity arises, smashing paws beavers lodges. perhaps due differing habitat preferences, brown bears not known hunt beavers in denali national park. less significant predators include wolverines, canadian lynx, bobcats, , fox, increasingly unlikely take full-grown beavers due smaller size, , american alligators, minimally co-exist beavers. both golden eagles (aquila chrysaetos) , bald eagles (haliaeetus leucocephalus) may on occasion prey on beaver, small kits. despite repeated claims, no evidence shows river otters predators of beavers.