As many of you readers know,At least 65 million beavers — possibly five times that number — were thought to have inhabited North America before Europeans arrived............ However, by the beginning of the 20th century, the beaver was on the brink of extinction from overhunting for its musk (used in perfume and folk medicines) and luxurious fur. ....In the early colonial period(1600-mid 1700's)England, France, Spain and Holland largely fought each other over North America for control of the Beaver resource .......While still seen as a "varmint" and destroyer of trees by some, many Canadians and Americans have come to value some of the ecoservices beavers provide including the buffering effect on adjacent lands............... The ponds and wetlands beavers produce keep water in the landscape for drier times and, during precipitation events, slow runoff and reduce flooding, capturing silt and pollutants in the process...................Generally nocturnal, beavers can occasionally be spotted around ponds and streams during the day, especially at dawn and dusk.......... They are monogamous with mating beginning in January and continuing through March, with kits born in the spring........... Two-year-olds leave the lodge or are driven out just before the birth of another litter............. While they can move as much as 150 miles from their birth place, young beavers usually stick within a few miles of their parents..................During the summer, beavers mostly feed on herbaceous (non-woody) plants and leaves of trees, shifting to bark and small twigs later in the year........... They cache twigs in their lodge to eat when winter ice prevents them from foraging............. While beavers prefer aspens, they will feed on a variety of other trees, with willows and cottonwoods also near the top of the list

Wild Ideas: Beavers: nature's

 engineer

By Pam Owen

rappnews.com

"I'm a big fan of the symbol of the beaver because
 I feel a country gets the animal it deserves. A beaver
 is an unaggressive, hard-working, waterproof,
unassuming, wonderful animal and I think it
speaks well of Canadians that we chose it."

That's what David Morrison, director of
archeology and history at the Musée Canadien
 des Civilisations in Hull, Quebec, is quoted as
 saying in a 2011 article in the Huffington Post
 Canada. With the boom in fur trading now
long gone, Canada was debating whether it
should keep the North American beaver
(Castor canadensis) as an official symbol
 of the country's sovereignty. In any case,
I think Morrison's characterization of the
 beaver was apt.

Its long, scaly tail, webbed feet and thick fur make this beaver well adapted for aquatic living. Photo by Steve via Wikimedia.

The largest rodent in North America and
 second largest in the world behind South
America's capybara, beavers typically grow
 to three or four feet long (excluding the tail)
 and 30-60 pounds. The largest beaver on
record is 85 pounds, according to the
Virginia Fish and Wildlife Information Service.

At least 65 million beavers — possibly five
times that number — were thought to have
inhabited North America before Europeans
 arrived. However, by the beginning of the
 20th century, the beaver was on the brink
of extinction from overhunting for its musk
 (used in perfume and folk medicines) and
 luxurious fur.

With increased concern about nature
conservation in general following World
 War II, beavers were reintroduced into
many areas, including Virginia. By 1988
their numbers on the continent had
increased to 12 million, making their
recovery "one of the greatest conservation
stories," according to an article in the
January/February 2003 issue of National
 Parks magazine.

Often called "nature's engineer," the beaver
 is second only to humans in reengineering
natural ecosystems, and without them
Virginia would have few naturally
 occurring ponds. Beavers create ponds to
 protect their lodges, which they build out
 of trees they gnaw down. Access to the
lodges is under water.

The deep water also enables beavers to
transport larger tree segments to the
construction site. They will even dig
 canals to aid in such material transport.
When they can't build dams, beavers will
 dig tunnels that are 10-40 foot long in the
 banks of streams to use as dens, according
 to VaFWIS. Because of the steep gradient
and rocky bottoms of streams at their
headwaters, beavers are not usually not
 found in those areas.

While humans may not be happy with the
 beaver's engineering, the ponds and
wetlands it creates serve as habitat for
many other species. When beavers move
 on, many of these wetlands convert to
meadows, providing habitat to other
species before forest takes over again.
With this cascading effect, populations
 of many species rebound along with the
 beavers.

Humans should also value some of the
 ecoservices beavers provide, including
the buffering effect on adjacent lands.
The ponds and wetlands beavers produce
 keep water in the landscape for drier
times and, during precipitation events,
 slow runoff and reduce flooding,
capturing silt and pollutants in the process.

The beaver that had recently gnawed
 down a few tulip tree saplings at a pond
 where I live seems to have moved on,
likely driven off by all of the human
 activity from the trout-fishing operation
at the adjacent pond. While I didn't get a
 chance to see this particular beaver, I've
 been lucky enough to observe others on
 various occasions.

During the summer, beavers mostly feed
 on herbaceous (non-woody) plants and 
leaves of trees, shifting to bark and small
 twigs later in the year. They cache twigs 
in their lodge to eat when winter ice
 prevents them from foraging. While 
beavers prefer aspens, they will feed 
on a variety of other trees, with willows
 and cottonwoods also near the top of the list.

Some targeted species, such as native
willow, actually benefit from this trimming,
which stimulates root growth and the spread
of suckers. When a beaver is cutting branches
below water, its lips close behind its front teeth,
 keeping water from entering its mouth.

Although they are nocturnal, beavers can 
occasionally be spotted around ponds and 
streams during the day, especially at dawn 
and dusk. They are monogamous and breed
 cooperatively, which is rare among mammals.
 Dominant males and females control mating
 within a colony of four to eight related
 individuals.

Mating starts in January and continues
through March, with kits born in the spring.
 Two-year-olds leave the lodge or are driven
out just before the birth of another litter.
While they can move as much as 150 miles
 from their birth place, young beavers
usually stick within a few miles of their parents.

Beaver facts

• In 1855, American poet Henry Wadsworth
•  Longfellow featured the beaver and its 
• lodge in his epic poem "The Song of 
• Hiawatha." In the poem (available at
• hwlongfellow.org), Hiawatha pursues
•  Pau-Puk-Keewis, who entreats a 
• colony of beavers to turn him into
•  one of them so he can enjoy their
•  "pleasant . . . dwelling" and escape
•  Hiawatha. The king of the beavers 
• agrees, inviting Pau-Puk-Keewis 
• into the beavers' lodge and making
•  him the colony's leader:

Thus into the clear, brown water
Silently sank Pau-Puk-Keewis:
Found the bottom covered over
With the trunks of trees and branches,
Hoards of food against the winter,
Piles and heaps against the famine;
Found the lodge with arching doorway,
Leading into spacious chambers.

• To quote James Thurber, another 
• American writer,

"One has but to observe a community
of beavers at work in a stream to
understand the loss in his sagacity,
balance, co-operation, competence
and purpose which Man has suffered
since he rose up on his hind legs.
He began to chatter and he developed
 Reason, Thought and Imagination,
qualities which would get the smartest
 group of rabbits or orioles in the world
into inextricable trouble overnight."

• The term "eager beaver" came into
•  common parlance in World War II,
•  from officers' characterization of 
• zealous recruits.
• According to one nasty bit of folklore, 
• beavers were thought to "self-castrate"
•  in order to deter hunters from killing 
• them to obtain their musk for perfume 
• and medicine.
• After their extirpation from Great 
• Britain 400 years ago, beavers were
•  reintroduced there in 2008.
• Although beaver attacks are rare, then 
• can occur when beavers feel threatened
•  or have rabies. According to an article 
• in Britain's The Telegraph, last April 
• an angler in Belarus died after he
•  was got too close to a beaver, 
• wanting to have his photo taken 
• with the animal. The beaver bit 
• him twice on the thigh, severing an artery.
• Hats, especially top hats, were once 
• made with beaver fur. The changeover
•  to using silk benefited more than just
•  Fred Astaire, helping to ease the
•  demand for beaver pelts.