#castor fiber

[thoughtlessarse]

Beavers ‘breathe new life’ into Dorset as dams built and biodiversity returns

National Trust says one year after reintroduction they are enriching habitats and may be having kits this summer

They were released this time last year with fanfare, much hope and also, perhaps, a little trepidation. Twelve months on, there have been ups and downs for the first beavers to be (officially) reintroduced into the wild in England since the semiaquatic mammals were hunted to extinction 400 years ago. Providing an end-of-year report, the National Trust, which is in charge of the project, said it was thrilled the beavers had been reshaping their new home in Dorset, where they have felled trees to construct a 35-metre dam, slowing the flow of a stream and creating a deep, wildlife-rich pool. By coppicing trees they have allowed more light in and improved habitats for plants, insects, amphibians, birds and bats – and may help stop a nearby road from flooding. Trail cameras have picked up an otter fishing in the pond as well as a barn owl hunting there, and volunteers have spotted birds including redpolls and water rails. The cameras also captured footage of two of the beavers mating, which is being taken as a sign they have settled in their new home and that there could be kits this summer.

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[leaf-thief]

weirdly gnawed tree by beavers in Pepelina, Bulgaria

[birdblues]

Eurasian Beaver

[michaelnordeman]

Eurasian beaver/bäver.

[dendroica]

One of an adult pair of Eurasian beavers after being released on the National Trust Holnicote estate on Exmoor in Somerset. The male and female were released on the estate to help with flood management and improve biodiversity

Photograph: Ben Birchall/PA

(via The week in wildlife – in pictures | Environment | The Guardian)

[zoophotographs]

Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber)

Zoom Erlebniswelt Gelsenkirchen 2016

(c) by me

[carnegiemuseumnaturalhistory]

B is for Beaver (sticks)

by Sarah Shelley

The Section of Mammals at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History houses nearly 130,000 specimens. As a fairly recent hire in the section, I have spent the last six months familiarizing myself with the contents of the boxes, drawers and jars and the many delights they contain. Just recently, Curator of Mammals, John Wible, and I were rummaging through one of the older cabinets in the section. In these cabinets are boxes containing old exhibit specimens including skulls sliced in half, some pelts and even some jars of owl pellets containing rodent bones. 

Sliced beaver skull

In one of the drawers my eyes fell upon a small bundle of sticks. I picked them up, somewhat bemused.

‘What are these?’ I asked.

‘Those are beaver sticks.’ Replied John.

A bundle of (small) beaver sticks

And sure enough, upon closer inspection, it was possible to see small gnaw marks on the sticks. We continued our rummaging and in the next drawer found another bundle of larger sticks.

‘And those are big beaver sticks.’

A big beaver stick with gnaw marks

Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents. There are two living species, the North American beaver (Castor canadensis) and the slightly larger Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber). During the Ice Age there was even a giant beaver (Castoroides) that was about two meters long and thought to weigh approximately 100 kg (four times more than the average living beaver).

Beavers use sticks and logs to dam rivers and build their dens, known as ‘lodges.’ They use their enlarged front incisors to break down plants and trees. Their front teeth grow continuously and are stained red by an iron pigment that serves to strengthen the tooth enamel against wear.

A North American beaver (Castor canadensis) skull showing its enlarged front incisor teeth

Sarah Shelley is a postdoctoral research fellow in the Section of Mammals at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Museum employees are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences working at the museum.

[meissobobrish]

Castor fiber says: happiness is street food!