Common beaver - description, habitat, lifestyle

By ordinary beaver is meant a semi-aquatic animal, which is assigned to the order of rodents. Otherwise, this representative of the family is called river due to the fact that the rodent prefers to live in the corresponding water sources. The animal is able to hit even the most experienced person who deals with such animals. He perfectly builds housing, takes care of the offspring and obtains food. According to its overall characteristics, this rodent is the second of the largest. In today's article we will consider everything that is connected with it.

Description

1. The largest animal among rodents is considered capybara, beaver with respect takes second place. The mammal is famous for its overall features, which gives it an awesome look. Such animals prefer to lead a half-aquatic way of life.
2. If we consider their dimensions, then adult animals can grow up to 1.3 m in the body. Agree, it’s impressive. At the same time, the shoulders grow to 35 cm, and body weight ranges from 30 kg. Differences in gender between these individuals are poorly expressed. We can only say that females are slightly larger than males.
3. The body format is squat, limbs are short, with five fingers. The hind limbs are considered the most developed, they are emphasized. Due to the fact that animals prefer to dwell mostly in water, their spaces between the fingers are equipped with membranes. The claws are strong and strong, causing lacerations during collisions.
4. The tail is given special attention. There is no wool on it. In format, the tail looks like an oval, elongated and very flat. It grows up to 30 cm in length, about 13 cm in width. Some individuals may have hairs in the main part. The tail itself seems to be covered with keratinized flake particles. Between them there is a very short and stiff pile. The upper part is characterized by the presence of a keel.
5. Despite the fact that these individuals are considered large-sized, their eyes are small. Ears are also not famous for grandeur, they hide under the hair and practically do not stand out against the background of the head. When the animal descends into the water, its nostrils close, as do the holes in the ears. The membranes that are called blinking come down to the eyes.
6. The primary dentition is characterized by an accelerated type. However, a separate root system may be present in adults due to age characteristics. The incisors are located at the back of the mouth. They are growths that are isolated from the mouth. It is this trait that allows animals to nibble whatever they want in the aquatic environment.
7. The fur of animals is pigmented by black, dark brown, brownish, chestnut hues. It is famous for having a thick pillow with an oily impregnation. The outer hair itself is stiff and elongated. The paws are painted black, as well as the tail, although the latter can have a dark gray pigment. Shedding is done once a year. It begins at the end of spring, ends with the beginning of winter or the end of autumn.
8. The anal area is equipped with paired glands, as well as a beaver stream, the main purpose of which is to signal the sex and other characteristics of a particular individual. Their jets secrete a secret with an enhanced smell. This aroma allows other individuals to navigate among the entire beaver settlement and highlight a specific member of the pack.

Lifestyle

1. The discussed family representatives prefer to live near slowly flowing water sources, whether it be small rivers or storage facilities. They also like completely standing springs, such as ponds or lakes. Beavers occupy the coastline and scatter in this area. They do not mind settling in quarries or old people. They are completely removed from fast-flowing water sources, as well as those places that almost freeze to the bottom during the winter season.
2. These individuals require vegetation on the coast. They prefer shrubs and wood, like larch. Also like herbs, which form the basis of the diet.
3. Animals are both excellent divers and swimmers. Their lungs are huge, as well as the liver. All this allows you to gain enough air to swim the required distance and stay in the water for up to 15 minutes. When a mammal gets ashore, it feels unsafe, looks awkward.
4. When danger is brewing, rodents with all their strength begin to slap their tail-shovel in the water, then also quickly hide in the aquatic environment. They thus sound an alarm to all other members of the family so that they disappear in a timely manner.
5. Accommodation is carried out singly or in small groups. A family can consist of 7 individuals, which are represented by a couple and their offspring. If a family occupies a certain territory, then it is listed behind it for several more years and even more.
6. If the water area is relatively small, it can be occupied by a bachelor or a small family. But larger sections are assigned to groups. Beavers try not to leave the water bodies further than 150 m, because this increases the risk to life.
7. These individuals bypass their possessions, after which they mark the borders with a secret that calls not to leave their homes. As for the period of activity, these mammals prefer to stay awake at dusk or at night.
8. With the onset of the autumn or spring season, adult members of the family leave their homes in the evening, after which they work throughout the night. When cold or frost sets in, these individuals rarely creep out to the surface.

Life span

1. Considering the period of existence in the natural environment, we can say that under such conditions they reach 15 years. If you keep mammals in captivity, they will live about 20-25 years. Life is shortened due to the presence of enemies in nature and some diseases characteristic of these rodents.
2. Even if you consider that animals are famous for their excellent immune system, they can still get sick. Among the most common ailments, an infection is distinguished, including tularemia. Because of her, the animals simply die.
3. The population is also affected by special weather conditions, including winter floods. For example, they can take the lives of more than half of the beaver population. And spring floods lead to the death of young animals, which are not adapted to such situations.

Population

1. The discussed individuals belonging to the ordinary or Eurasian segment have long populated the countries of Europe and Asia, respectively. But at some point, beavers began to ruthlessly hunt, which led to a significant reduction in the population. Today the population is very small, it is almost on the verge of extinction.
2. At the beginning of the 19th century, in almost all territories of the above countries, these rodents did not remain at all. In the 20th century, the population numbered about 1300 individuals. They created groups that monitored the population and punished violators. Therefore, the number of beavers increased in Europe, while in Asia it is recovering, but slowly.

Value

1. Hunted mammals were introduced due to the fact that their fur is very much appreciated.Also, rodents were caught for a beaver stream, which is often used in the manufacture of perfumes, pharmacology, and medicine.
2. The meat of this animal is considered a delicacy. Catholics even equate it to lean varieties. However, today it is known that the beaver can tolerate salmonellosis, partly because of this, its meat has ceased to be consumed in such quantities.

Characteristics

1. It is worth noting that the individuals represented live in holes. Such dwellings are sometimes called huts. An interesting fact is that the entrance to their house is always located under water. Most often, rodents begin to dig a hole on a steep steep bank. Such a dwelling is presented in the form of a complex maze.
2. In addition, the house has several entrances. Beavers are responsible for building. They try to compact the shelf part and the walls. In addition, mammals most often build a hut where, as it might seem, there are no conditions for such actions.
3. Burrows are often found in swampy, low and gentle shores. It is on the shallows. Individuals begin construction as soon as the summer comes to an end. The finished dwelling is a cone-shaped burrow. At the same time, the height in diameter is really amazing, it can reach up to 10 m.
4. Animals try to carefully decorate the walls with clay and silt. Due to this feature, this fortress is almost impregnable for predators and other pests. Such beavers belong to clean animals. In no case will they litter in their house with excrement or pieces of food.
5. Famous platinum beavers begin to build in the event that the beaver family lives in a reservoir, which often changes the water level. Trees that fall into the water often act as a powerful frame base. As a result, beavers try to cover the trunk with all available materials.
6. Finished platinum can have a length of up to 30 m. At the same time, the base reaches up to 6 m and a height of up to 5 m. It is worth noting the interesting fact that in Montana on the Jefferson River, beavers built a dam of incredible size. Its length reached as much as 0.7 km.! Animals begin to felling trees to prepare food for construction purposes.
7. Beavers gnaw tall trees at the very base. After that, the animal can nibble branches. If the tree is large, then the rodent divides the trunk into several parts. Aspen with a diameter of up to 10 cm can be dumped by beavers in just a few minutes. If the tree has a diameter of up to half a meter, the animal will dump it in less than a night.
8. During this, beavers rest on their tail and stand on their hind legs. At the same time, their teeth begin to work like a saw. During this procedure, the fangs of the beavers sharpen themselves. They consist of very strong and hard dentin. The small branches that were dumped are eaten by the animals themselves.
9. The remaining building materials are sent by water towards the construction of the dam or dwelling. During the construction process, beavers trample paths, which are soon filled with water. Most often they are called "beaver channels." They are used to transport wood feed. After a long work, the area takes on an unusual look. In the process, it is called the "beaver landscape."

Diet

1. The considered individuals belong to the category of animals that strictly feed on products of exclusively plant origin. These semi-aquatic mammals prefer only plant shoots and tree bark.
2. Often animals like to feast on willow, aspen, poplar or birch. Beavers are very fond of herbaceous plants. Among those, the most popular are iris, egg-capsule, young reed, water lily and cattail.
3. Beavers begin to live actively in the territory where a large amount of softwood is present.In addition, hazel, elm, linden and bird cherry are often included in the daily diet of the mammals represented. In the beaver menu, you can not find oak and alder. Such material is used exclusively for construction purposes and for arranging your own home.
4. It remains interesting that beavers are very fond of acorns. Moreover, daily in their diet such a product is about 20% of the total mass of the animal itself. River beavers can cope with any solid plant-based feed without any problem. This is achieved thanks to a powerful bite and large teeth.
5. It should be noted that beavers almost always consume only a few tree species. If they switch to a new type of power, they will need a long adaptation. The microflora in the intestine should be completely rebuilt to a new kind of menu. As soon as the warm period begins, a large amount of grassy feed begins to enter the diet of beavers.
6. With the onset of autumn, beavers begin to harvest food for the winter. Interestingly, animals put wood feed into the water. Thanks to this, the product fully retains its taste and nutritional qualities until February. The average food supply per family is up to 70 cubic meters.

Breeding

1. As for puberty, individuals reach it only for 3 years of life. Animals are most often rushed from late February to late March. At this time, beavers begin to crawl out of the winter shelters and roam the snow. They also often swim in thawing wormwood. They actively mark the area with a beaver stream.
2. Among other things, not only males do this, but also females who have reached puberty. Interestingly, the mating process occurs exclusively in water. After a little more than 3 months, up to 5 cubs are born. The number of young will directly depend on the age of the female. Old beavers bring more beavers than young ones.
3. As soon as young animals are born, in the early days they feed exclusively on mother's milk. When babies are more than 3 weeks old, plant-based foods begin to be present in their diet. Mother stops feeding beavers with milk when they turn about 2 months old.
4. In addition, it was at this time that young animals began to actively develop incisors. Therefore, the beavers go after their parents to chew on something. They become completely independent by the age of 2 years. At this age, they are already starting to build their own homes.

In today's article, we will consider the second largest mammal, classified as a rodent. Beavers in their overall characteristics can grow more than 1 m. They represent excellent builders and parents. Due to the catch and constant hunting, the population has significantly decreased, but in this century they are fighting for its restoration.

Video: common beaver (Castor fiber)