Brief information about beavers. Interesting facts about beavers and beaver dams A short message about beavers

Beavers belong to the order of rodents, the Beaver family. These mammals are divided into only two species: the common beaver and the Canadian beaver. The first is more common in Mongolia, the Baltic and Atlantic coast areas. The second lives in North America. Each of them is divided into its own subspecies.

Appearance of beavers

Among all rodents, beavers are among the largest. The weight can reach 33 kg, and the length can be 1.2 meters. The limbs are shortened, the front ones are weak. There are special membranes on the fingers, with the help of which the beaver swims freely under water. Quite strong claws. The paddle-shaped tail on average reaches a length of 25 - 30 cm and a width of 15 cm. There is no hair on the tail, only at the base. All wool is quite tough. The ears are small, protruding slightly from under the fur. Underwater, the ears and nostrils close. The teeth are usually without roots; Only older members of the species sometimes develop weak molars. The beaver's build is based on its semi-aquatic lifestyle.

Beaver activity

Beavers settle near water bodies. Wide and fast-flowing rivers, as well as reservoirs that completely freeze in cold times, are not suitable for the life activities of these rodents. They prefer lakes, ponds, slow rivers, reservoirs, and quarries. Bushy and herbaceous coastal vegetation is required, which is a constant source of nutrition. The body type of beavers makes them excellent divers. Under water, all their vital functions are stably maintained for 10-15 minutes, since the large size of the liver and lungs allows them to store air reserves. But on land their movements are a little slowed down.

They live both individually and in families. The area where a family is founded (5 – 8 individuals) is occupied throughout the life of several generations. The size of this zone depends on the number of representatives in the family and the area of ​​the reservoir: a small lake can be a haven for a single beaver or a whole family; in large reservoirs several families can live at once. On land, beavers do not stray far from home. Their communication is based on postures, strikes, screams and special scent marks. Particular activity is observed in the evening and night hours.
Burrows, which are their homes, are located only on steep banks or cliffs. You can only get there underwater. The burrows represent a whole system of labyrinths with several entrances. Beavers are very reliable builders. All passages are firmly compacted. The residential area is located at a meter depth. The floor is always above the water level, because when the water in the river rises, the beaver, scraping resources from the ceiling, stabilizes the situation.
Beavers are famous for their dams. They build it exclusively on reservoirs that are unstable in relation to the water level. The basis is branches, silt, clay and other resources that beavers obtain on land. These structures help regulate the water level in reservoirs to preserve the integrity of houses. For construction, beavers choose places where trees grow close to the shore, because they do not have to travel long distances from their homes in search of the necessary material.

Beaver nutrition

Beavers rely on tree bark and other vegetation for their diet. As a rule, the diet does not consist of one type of tree, but several. To switch from one feeding mode to another, a beaver needs a certain adaptation period. They love willow, birch, linden, and bird cherry. They don’t eat oak, but they use it as a base for buildings; they love acorns. All supplies are stored under water.

Beaver breeding

Female beavers breed once a year and produce from 1 to 6 individuals. Pregnancy lasts about 100 days, and mating occurs directly under water. Cubs weigh approximately 0.5 kg. Two days after birth, they can already swim, because the female teaches everything at a very early stage. After 2 years, beavers become mature and leave the house.

The common beaver is a large and semi-aquatic animal that belongs to the order Rodents. The second name of the beaver is “river beaver”. This creature surprises people with its skills and abilities: the creature is capable of excellent construction, and it is also a good owner and family partner. The beaver ranks second in size among Rodents from all over the world. To get to know this creature better, you can look at the photos that are scattered on the Internet.

The main features of the appearance of the animal

Before we begin to characterize the appearance of the animal, it is worth noting one fact. People most often, when they say the words beaver and beaver, mean the same meaning. But it is worth remembering that these are completely two different words and they are used in different meanings. So, a beaver is a living creature itself, and a beaver is the animal’s fur:

Beavers can camouflage well with their discreet fur colors. Thus, the fur color of a representative of beavers has a light chestnut or dark brown tint, in some cases it can be black. The rodent's tail and paws are painted black. The beaver's tail has special wen, as well as specialized glands.

Thus, specialists call the bad-smelling substance that is formed from the tail glands of the common beaver beaver stream. The secret of wen has all the information about the rodent, carries information about his age, as well as gender. The main mark that warns other individuals about the border of the beaver's territory is the smell of the beaver stream, which smells completely differently for each individual individual. The lifespan of a common beaver in natural conditions is about 15 years.

Photos of beavers

Where do beavers live?

These creatures prefer to live in Europe (Scandinavian countries), in France (in the lower reaches of the Rhone River), in Germany (on the Elbe River), and also in Poland (along the banks of the Vistula River). Rodents also live in forest or forest-steppe regions of the European part of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.

On the territory of Russia, the common beaver can be found in the Northern Trans-Urals. Beavers live in separate groups in the upper reaches of the Yenisei River, in Kuzbass (Kemerovo region), in Khabarovsk Territory, in the Tomsk region, Kamchatka and the Baikal region. In addition, the animal can easily be found in Mongolia or Northwestern China.

Rodents live with a special device that helps them lead a semi-aquatic lifestyle. Underwater, the creature's ear openings and nostrils close tightly. Also, special nictitating membranes are shifted to the eyes, thanks to which the beaver can clearly look around under water. The animal's mouth is formed in such a way that excess water cannot enter it while the animal is diligently swimming under the surface of the water. The function of controlling the coordination of movement under water is performed by the tail of the animal.

When choosing a place for further residence, beavers prefer to occupy the territories of the banks of calm, quiet rivers, lakes, reservoirs, as well as various ponds. Rodents do not settle in places where rivers flow quickly or where rivers are excessively wide. Beavers also avoid bodies of water, which freeze to the very bottom in winter. For common beavers It is important to have plenty of softwood and deciduous trees nearby, as well as aquatic, herbaceous and shrubby grass in the bank areas and within the river itself.

Beavers are excellent swimmers and divers. With the help of its uniquely designed lungs, the animal can stay under water for about 15 minutes and during this time swim a distance of 750 meters. It is for this reason that rodents feel more comfortable underwater compared to the surface of the earth.

What do beavers eat in the wild?

Beavers are predominantly vegetarian in their diet and belong to the plant type of mammals. Beavers rely on tree shoots and bark to feed on them. Beavers love to eat poplar, aspen, birch or willow. Beavers are also not averse to eating herbaceous plants: reeds, cattails, water lilies, iris, the list can be continued for a very long time.

What do beavers eat? These animals need a large number of softwood trees for food and living. Bird cherry, elm, linden, hazel and other trees are important for the diet of rodents. Trees such as oak and alder are not usually consumed by animals, but well used in their buildings and structures. But the rodent will never refuse to eat acorns. Strong and large teeth easily cope with tree food. Most often, rodents use only a few tree species located nearby as food.

In the summer season, the amount of herbal food for the animal increases comparatively. In the autumn, all beavers begin to carefully prepare woody food for the winter. Throughout the winter, beavers consume mainly food stored in advance. Beavers place them in water so that the food retains useful vitamins and microelements throughout the winter.

The amount of wood food reserves for the entire family of rodents can be very large. So, in order to prevent food from freezing into ice, animals usually placed it is below the water level. Even when the reservoir is completely covered with ice, food remains freely available for the beavers, so the family will definitely not have to starve.

Giving birth and raising babies

Beavers are considered monogamous animals. If they once connect with the opposite sex, then they remain with their soulmate throughout their lives. The female is usually dominant in the family. By the age of 2 years, beavers become capable of fully reproducing. Ordinary beavers can produce offspring only once a year. The onset of mating season occurs in mid-January and continues until the very end of February. The gestation period for babies lasts 3.5 months.

In April-May, from 2 to 6 beaver cubs are born. Beaver babies emerge sighted and covered with fur; the body weight of the newborn is 0.5 kg. A few days after birth, babies can already swim in the water. Adults take good and careful care of their babies.

By 1 month of life, small cubs are already able to eat plant foods, but the female continues to feed them milk until they reach 3 months. Adults remain close to their family for another 2 years, after which they calmly move out and begin an independent life.

Benefits of beavers for humans

1. The main advantage of beavers is their residence in rivers, as this has a positive effect on the ecological system. Particularly great benefits come from the construction of beaver dams. Small animals prefer to settle in these places, as well as waterfowl, which carry eggs on their legs, resulting in fish appearing in the reservoir. Beavers also influence water purification, because their dams retain silt and reduce the turbidity of the water.
2. This rodent friendly enough. But at the same time it has some enemies - brown bears, foxes and wolves. The greatest danger to animals is man himself. That is why, to preserve the population of this animal, effective measures were introduced to protect individuals and restore their numbers.

The river beaver lives in the freshwater environment of lakes, rivers, ponds, and streams. This animal was recently on the verge of extinction. This situation has arisen due to the fault of humanity, which likes to wear warm hats and fur coats.

The entire life of a beaver is connected to the aquatic environment. To make it easier for the animal to swim, there are membranes on its hind legs, and a large tail also helps.

The beaver reaches a weight of up to 23 kg and a length of 135 cm. Females are always smaller than males. The beaver is characterized by a blunt muzzle, small ears and short legs. The beaver's fur consists of several layers: the first layer is coarse red-brown hair, the second is a gray undercoat that prevents hypothermia.

The reservoirs in which beavers live should be in forested areas, deep and with a slow flow. Animals often create artificial conditions, “making” huge dams from tree branches, algae, and silt.

Beavers diligently build a dam in order to change the direction of water flow. Underwater, a beaver dam can be up to 3 meters thick, and from above it narrows to about 60 cm. The strength of the dam is surprising; it can easily withstand the weight of a horse!

Beavers purposefully change the water flow so that water floods dry places and forms a pond in which the animal will build a hut. Their house resembles an upside down cup. There are 2 rooms in the house: a family of beavers lives in one, this room is filled with rubble. And near the exit, the second room is a pantry with food supplies for the winter. The beaver's house can be seen above the surface of the water. But for protection purposes, the entrance is located under. water.

Schematic representation of a beaver dam and house. As you can see, the house is a separate building.

As expected, there are two exits from the house: the front exit and the emergency exit.

This is all great, of course, but why do beavers need dams? The answer is simple, in winter these rodents remain active and they need a dam of sufficient depth so that they do not freeze to the very bottom. The dam helps raise the water level. In general, you need to be well prepared for winter, otherwise you’ll be in trouble :-).

Film: “Beavers. Great builders." From the series “Alone with Nature.”

Interesting video about the life of beavers. By the way, did you know that beaver dams have the shape of an arc concave against the current; all modern dams built by man have the same shape. And it is no coincidence that an arc concave against the flow can best withstand the pressure of water. The last minute is a complete mess :)

Film for children: All about animals [Beavers].

Idyllic video: Beaver washes his hair / Beaver Resting.

A beaver can also get along with people without difficulty: “They sheltered a beaver (Beaver Semyon).”

Semyon. Continuation.

What are animals like beavers? What types of them exist? What do beavers eat in the wild? Where do these animals live? How do beavers care for their young? All this will be discussed in our publication.

General information

The beaver is the largest rodent in domestic latitudes. The body length of adult individuals can reach more than a meter. At the same time, a beaver can weigh about 30 kilograms.

The animals have a squat body, which is supported on short legs with webbed toes and powerful claws. Beavers have a massive head with a thick neck. The ears are small and short. A wide jaw and a pair of large incisor teeth allow it to gnaw through the trunks of large trees. Beavers are distinguished by their large, flat tail, which vaguely resembles an oar. The surface of the latter contains keratinized scales.

Varieties

The beaver family includes only two species of animals - the European river beaver and the Canadian beaver. Animals of the first category are the largest rodents that live in Europe. They inhabit rivers where the current is not too fast. Occasionally they can be seen in lakes and irrigation canals, the banks of which are generously overgrown with bushes and small trees.

As for Canadian beavers, these animals differ from their European counterparts in having a shortened muzzle, a not so elongated body, and large ears. They can be found almost throughout North America, in addition to arid regions.

Where do beavers live?

The favorite habitats of the animals are shallow reservoirs with little current. These animals prefer to settle away from large civilization. The main condition for them is access to an abundance of wood, which serves them not only as food, but also as material for building homes.

It is worth noting that at the beginning of the last century, beavers were on the verge of extinction. The reason was the uncontrolled extermination of these large rodents in pursuit of valuable fur. Our country was no exception. Fortunately, in Russia the problem was quickly resolved, which was facilitated by a policy aimed at protecting these animals. Currently, beavers spread freely in Russian latitudes. The largest populations are observed today in the European part of Russia, in western Siberia, in the Yenisei River basin, and in Kamchatka.

Lifestyle

Beavers are excellent swimmers. They are able to dive into the depths of bodies of water, holding their breath for a long time. An adult beaver can stay underwater for 10-15 minutes. Animals dive not only to search for food, but also at the first danger. Having noticed a predator, beavers perform active slaps of their tails on the water. Loud sounds warn relatives of the approach of a predator.

Beavers are known as skilled builders. Unique huts made of branches, snags and tree trunks protect them from natural enemies such as wolves, bears and wolverines. The beaver's house serves as excellent protection during the onset of cold weather. Even in extreme cold, their huts maintain a comfortable level of warmth.

Beavers spend the bulk of their day foraging for food, building dams, and constructing shelters. The animals prefer to work at dusk. Their work ends as soon as dawn comes.

Caring for offspring

Before telling how beavers take care of their young, I would like to note that the mating season for these animals starts in February. Females bear offspring until early summer. How many cubs does a beaver have? As a rule, 2-4 babies are born. In rare cases, one more baby is born.

From the first days of life, beavers have excellent vision and orientation in space, and their body, like that of adults, is covered with a thick fur coat. How do beavers care for their young? Females show a reverent attitude towards their offspring, trying to teach them useful skills. At first, the beaver has to literally force the babies out of the warm, cozy shelter into the water. However, such an attitude only brings benefits to the offspring. After all, beavers simply must be able to swim and dive well in the first weeks of life.

How else do beavers care for their young? For several months, females feed their babies with breast milk, carefully comb their fur, and do not give offense to their relatives. Beavers gradually switch their offspring to plant foods. At first, kids are offered all kinds of seaweed. Then they bring more solid food, in particular, young shoots of trees, foliage, and water lilies.

Until the age of one year, the cubs are under the full care of their adult relatives and rarely leave the shelter. As they grow older, they begin to rely on them to obtain food and strengthen housing. However, since beavers take care of their cubs for the longest period, even after becoming independent, the babies do not have to worry about the lack of food and their own safety.

Young beavers live in their parents' shelter until they reach two years of age. During this time, they manage to significantly increase in size and gain several tens of kilograms of live weight. As soon as young individuals comprehend the secrets of obtaining food, protecting themselves from enemies, building dams, constructing huts and arranging storerooms, they are forced to leave their “father’s home.” They part with their family, move a considerable distance from their place of birth and occupy new territories, where they build their own huts and find a couple to continue the family line.

What is a baby beaver called?

The babies of such animals are traditionally called beavers. However, people often call them kittens. Why is such a strange definition applied to the cubs of these animals? Probably the reason is the rather unusual sounds that young individuals make. Distantly, their screams resemble muffled meows. In addition, newborn beavers are similar in appearance to kittens.

What do beavers eat in the wild?

Beavers are vegetarians. The basis of their diet is the bark of various trees. Animals especially like birch, willow, and aspen. In reservoirs, beavers consume a significant amount of coastal vegetation, in particular, they eat cattails, iris, water lilies, and reeds.

Beavers are thrifty animals. They prepare food for future use, storing it in storerooms near their own homes. Here food gradually accumulates until the cold weather sets in. Thus, with the arrival of frost, the beaver’s house becomes not only a shelter, but also a kind of dining room.

As a rule, beavers obtain food in close proximity to their own shelter. However, it often happens that their reserves are washed away and carried away by the river current. In such situations, the animals have to go some distance from the shore of the reservoir in order to get enough of the tree bark. Since beavers are quite slow and clumsy on land, they often become easy prey for predators.

Classification

Domain: Eukaryotes

Kingdom: Animals

Type: Chordata

Class: Mammals

Squad: Rodents

Family: Beavers

View: Common beaver

The beaver has sharp, self-sharpening teeth, with which it cuts down trees and prepares building material for its semi-underwater home. This animal is monogamous and mates for life.

The beaver family is a single whole, but the head is the female. Together they collect branches, together carry them to the territory chosen for the house and also together raise and feed their offspring.

This mammal prefers to lead a twilight lifestyle and feeds exclusively on vegetation.

Habitat

People knew what beavers looked like back in early historical times. Then they lived in forests and meadow areas of Asia and Europe.

But by the first half of the 20th century, a significant part of these animals was exterminated due to the active extraction of their fur and a special secret - the beaver stream.

Today, the beaver can be found in France and Germany, in the countries of Scandinavia and Poland, in Belarus and the forest-steppe regions of Russia, mainly in the territory of its European part and the Northern Trans-Urals.

Its range also extends to Kuzbass, Khabarovsk Territory, Kamchatka and Tomsk. However, there are scattered outbreaks in these zones.

Characteristic

The common beaver, or river beaver, is a semi-aquatic mammal. This animal belongs to the order of rodents and is considered the largest representative of the Old World.

Beavers have a very sensitive sense of smell, thanks to which they are able to hide from predators in time

From a distance, a beaver can be confused with animals that lead a similar semi-aquatic lifestyle, such as and. In general, the animal, like the animals mentioned above, is valued for its fur.

Appearance

The appearance of beavers is influenced by their semi-aquatic lifestyle. The paws have membranes that allow the animals to swim quickly, and the flattened paddle-shaped tail acts as a rudder.

The body length of the river beaver is from 1 to 1.3 m, it is squat with five-fingered limbs that are somewhat shortened. The weight of the animal ranges from 30-32 kg, with females usually larger than males.

The black paws have flattened claws; they somewhat resemble limbs. On the second toe of the hind limbs it is forked and serves for combing fur.

The tail is covered with hair only at the base; the rest of it has hard, sparse hairs of short length. The horny carina is located along the central line.

The beaver's ears are small and wide; in the photo they are almost invisible under the fur; they close together under water. This animal has small eyes, which are closed by nictitating membranes when diving.

The jaw is also adapted to the lifestyle. The rear incisors are isolated, a feature that allows the animal to chew underwater. Molars, as a rule, are devoid of roots and are formed only in old individuals.

In the photo you can see that the beaver has quite beautiful fur. It consists of hard guard hairs. There is a down - silky and quite thick.

The color can be light chestnut, dark brown, sometimes the color of the fur is very dark – almost black.

A beaver sheds once a year - this process begins in late spring and can last until winter.

Key Features

Beavers are able to secrete a special secretion with which they mark their territory. In addition, this liquid carries information about the owner - age and gender. The smell of each individual is unique, like human fingerprints.

When danger approaches, the beaver hits the surface of the water with its flat tail and immediately dives - the sound is quite loud and allows other individuals to escape in time

The river beaver is very clean and carefully monitors the condition of its fur, and the special liquid that it rubs into its fur allows it not to freeze even in very cold water. This lubricant repels water, which is why the mammal does not feel the cold.

On land, beavers move rather clumsily, but are excellent swimmers.

They are excellent divers, and their large lungs allow them to stay under water for a quarter of an hour. During this period of time, the animal is able to cover a distance of 750 m.

Housing construction deserves special attention:

• Creating a house begins with a dam, which allows you to somewhat slow down the flow of a stream or river. The beaver places branches and stones at the bottom - this way he ensures the reliability of the structure.

The river beaver throws wood and debris on top, and seals the cracks with clay.

• The finished dam has the shape of a triangle. When the water rises, the animal lays down new branches. The whole process can take from a week to a month.
• Over time, the dwelling expands - the beaver builds channels, a “room” for storing supplies and the house itself, the height of which reaches 1 m, and the thickness of the walls is about 50 cm. Some entrances are under water and lead to the dry part of the hole, where the owners dry out and eat.

Beavers spend a significant portion of their time in their home, especially their young.

A beaver's home requires a sufficient amount of building material, the role of which is played by branches. To get them, the animal gnaws the trunks of nearby trees.

It takes about a day to prepare raw materials

Interesting! It takes an adult male no more than an hour to gnaw through a trunk with a diameter of 15 cm!

First, the beaver gnaws the trunk several times from all sides, then freezes and listens to the crackling sound. This allows him to dodge the falling barrel in time.

But often an animal, engaged in such dangerous work, dies under a fallen tree.

The female helps the male to disassemble and carry building materials to the site where the house is being built. Together they divide the trunk into small parts, gnaw off branches and twigs and gradually deliver them to their destination.

Nutrition

The beaver's diet consists of plant foods. They prefer:

• soft tree bark;
• young shoots;
• herbaceous plants.

They may also feed on acorns. Of particular value to them are water lilies, cattails, reeds, irises and egg capsules.

In second place are trees: bird cherry, hazel, elm and willow. Oak and alder are rarely present in the diet; these trees are usually used for buildings.

Interesting! A river beaver eats an impressive amount of food per day, which is about 20% of the weight of the animal itself!

The river beaver has large teeth and a powerful bite, thanks to which it can easily cope with hard food

The main menu consists of a small number of tree species. He switches to a new diet gradually, giving the body the opportunity to adapt to it.

In the fall, the beaver prepares supplies for the winter. He brings tree food into his house, which he puts in water. In this way, it is possible to preserve the nutritional quality of the “products” until February.

One family has about 65 cubic meters of reserves, and to prevent food from freezing into the ice, the beaver places it below the water level, usually under overhanging banks.

Behavior

Beavers can live alone, but more often they form families with 3-5 cubs. The territory inhabited by one family, as a rule, is passed down from generation to generation and is a small body of water and its coastal zone.

Beavers do not move more than 200 m from water, and the length of the occupied area will depend on the volume of food

If the place is rich in vegetation, then family territories may touch or even intersect. The boundaries are always marked with beaver spray, which is applied to mounds built from clay, mud and branches.

Since beavers look quite impressive, they have enough power to break thin ice with their bodies in the spring.

The animal floats to the surface and inspects the area. If a dam built last year crumbles, then construction of a new one begins in its place.

In autumn, the river beaver is particularly active in collecting supplies. But sometimes the stored food is not enough and the animal has to make winter forays.

This process takes a lot of effort, since the body and paws of these mammals are not adapted for traveling in the snow.

But such walks are necessary for survival

Beavers lead a nocturnal and crepuscular lifestyle. In summer, animals emerge from their burrows when darkness falls and work until sunrise.

In autumn, labor activity increases due to longer nights, and in winter it decreases and shifts to daylight hours.

It is quite difficult to take a photo of a beaver in the cold season, since during this period they appear on the surface very rarely. And if the air temperature drops to -20°C, then the animal remains in the house and does not leave under any circumstances.

Reproduction

The river beaver creates a family for life. The female is dominant and produces offspring once a year. After the mating season, which lasts from the second half of January until the end of February, mating occurs, and under the ice.

The duration of pregnancy is about 106 days. During this period, the female is actively preparing for childbirth - she lays down dried grass and wood shavings.

Cubs appear in the spring - in April or May. One litter can have from 1 to 6 heirs. Baby beavers look like smaller versions of their parents.

• The appearance of the cubs is touching - their body is well furred and one baby weighs up to 500 g.

The offspring are born semi-sighted and with sharp teeth

• The mother begins to teach the babies swimming on the second day of their life - she literally pushes them into the underwater corridor.
• In the fourth week, the cubs get used to eating vegetation - the basis of their diet during this period is soft stems and foliage. Parents themselves bring them food, and since babies must gain about a kilogram of weight every month, the newly-made mother and father have practically no rest in the spring.

In summer, vegetation is abundant, so beavers do not experience a lack of food.

• Until two years old, the cubs are constantly near their mother; upon reaching this age, they gradually leave their home and settle down. They go in search of a partner and free territory where they can set up their own home. During this period, many young beavers die because they do not have time to build a dam and make underwater burrows.

Relationships with people

Beavers build their dams, and humans build theirs. Everyone has different goals, so the relationship between people and these animals can be called a confrontation. Man, while erecting his own structure, often destroys houses built by beavers.

Beavers do exactly the same thing - transforming water and coastal territory according to their way of life, they destroy what people have built

But at the same time, there can be no talk of fighting on equal terms in this case. Beavers have beautiful thick fur, which looks quite attractive, and is valued like a fur coat or. As a result, people exterminate these animals.

Human greed is leading to a rapid decline in the numbers of these mammals.

The beaver stream, which is used to make fur waterproof, is also of great value - products made from the skins of these animals are not afraid of either rain or snow. A special secret is used in the manufacture of perfumes and medicines.

On a note! The beaver stream contains a special substance that is an analogue of aspirin and is highly effective for headaches and migraines!

The extraction of beaver fur became the cause of a large-scale conflict between England and France, which was one of the reasons for the development of the Seven Years' War, which occurred in 1756-1763.

The struggle for the right to own vast territories of the New World, where beavers lived at that time, became very bloody.

However, the outcome of this war did not bring any benefit to either side - England, being the winner, did not take advantage of the conquered areas, since they were very far from their native coast.

France was struck and suffered significant losses during the war years, including because the perfume industry was in decline for a long time.

For many centuries, in the eyes of man, beavers looked like prey - a source of profit. As a result, numerous colonies of these animals were exterminated, and their habitat underwent significant changes.

Today, these mammals are protected and still continue to resist humans. Some build, others destroy. And vice versa.

Beaver: The Tireless Dam Builder

Beaver (photo): Tireless dam builder