Celebrating International Beaver Day: The North American Beaver
April 7 is International Beaver Day, a day that is dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of beavers and their role in ecosystems and promoting their conservation and protection. Beavers play a critical role in maintaining the health of ecosystems by modifying water flow, nutrient cycles, and carbon storage. They also significantly impact their habitats by building dams and lodges and creating wetlands that provide habitat for other species.
There are two types of beavers: The Eurasian beaver and the North American beaver. The North American beaver is the largest rodent in the United States. The North American beaver is found all over North America with the exception of the California and Nevada deserts and parts of Utah and Arizona. They live in ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams and on the edge of wetlands.
The North American beaver is the largest rodent in the United States. They can weigh between 35 and 65 pounds. The heaviest beaver recorded weighed in at 110 pounds. The North American beaver also grows between two and three feet in length, excluding their tail. A beaver’s tail is very important because it helps them swim faster and is used to communicate. A beaver will slap it on the water to indicate danger. It is also an area where they store fat and is used to regulate body temperature.
Beaver’s teeth never stop growing. They gnaw on trees to prevent their teeth from becoming too long. Beavers also have transparent eyelids, which act as goggles, allowing them to see as they swim. This is necessary as beavers can hold their breath underwater for 15 minutes.
The North American beaver is known for building dams. The dams are constructed out of branches from trees, rocks, grass, and mud. The inner bark, twigs, shoots, and leaves from trees are also an important part of the beaver’s diet. The dams are built to protect the beavers from predators. The dams are also built to expand the beaver’s ideal habitat, increase food supply, and provide enough water for winter survival. The dams are built and repaired in the fall for the coming winter.
The creation of the dams also helps ecosystems and environments in the areas. Dams reduce stream erosion and form slow-moving ponds, which provide habitats to small aquatic life and food and water for larger animals. The beaver damns also help reduce soil erosion and can help reduce flooding.
The North American Beaver population was once at risk in the 1500s due to excessive hunting for their furs and their gland secretions that were used in medicines and perfumes. Interestingly, Canada made the beaver its official animal as a response to the fur trade and the use of beaver fur to make hats. This was a major part of Canada’s early economy.
Luckily, in response to conservation efforts and under laws and restrictions that protect beavers from being killed for their fur, the beaver populations have increased and are now stable. IUCN Red List lists the North American Beaver as of “Least Concern”.
Continuing to protect the North American beaver is important not only today but every day. Here are some of the ways you can celebrate.
- Take a hike and try to identify beaver dams.
- Read books and watch documentaries about beavers.
- Visit a local animal conservatory and learn about how to protect the animals.
- Become a member of Beavers Wetlands & Wildlife.
While the beaver population continues to rise, bringing awareness to these unique animals and showing the world how important they are for our ecosystems and natural environments is still important.
