Beaver animal. Beaver lifestyle and habitat

However, in spoken language word beaver widely used as a synonym for beaver(How fox And fox, ferret And ferret).

Origin

The beaver has beautiful fur, which consists of coarse guard hairs and very thick silky underfur. The fur color ranges from light chestnut to dark brown, sometimes black. The tail and limbs are black. Shedding occurs once a year, at the end of spring, but continues almost until winter. In the anal area there are paired glands, wen and the beaver stream itself, which secretes a strong-smelling secret - the beaver stream. The prevailing opinion about the use of wen as a lubricant for fur from getting wet is wrong. The secretion of the wen performs a communicative function, exclusively carrying information about the owner (gender, age). The smell of a beaver stream serves as a guide to other beavers about the border of the territory of a beaver settlement; it is unique, like fingerprints. The secretion of the wen, used in conjunction with the stream, allows you to keep the beaver tag in a “working” state longer due to its oily structure, which evaporates much longer than the secretion of the beaver stream.

Spreading

In the early historical time The common beaver was distributed throughout the forest-meadow zone of Europe and Asia, but due to intensive hunting, by the beginning of the 20th century, the beaver was practically exterminated in most of its range. The beaver's current range is largely the result of acclimatization and reintroduction efforts. In Europe, it lives in the Scandinavian countries, the lower reaches of the Rhone (France), the Elbe basin (Germany), the Vistula basin (Poland), in the forest and partly forest-steppe zones of the European part of Russia. In Russia, the beaver is also found in the Northern Trans-Urals. There are scattered habitats of the common beaver in the upper reaches of the Yenisei, Kuzbass, Baikal region, Khabarovsk Territory, and Kamchatka. In addition, it is found in Mongolia (Urungu and Bimen rivers) and in Northeast China (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region).

Lifestyle

Beaver lodge

In early historical times, beavers everywhere inhabited forest, taiga and forest-steppe zone Eurasia, along river floodplains reaching to the north to forest-tundra, and to the south to semi-deserts. Beavers prefer to settle along the banks of slow-flowing rivers, oxbow lakes, ponds and lakes, reservoirs, irrigation canals and quarries. Avoid wide and fast rivers, as well as reservoirs that freeze to the bottom in winter. For beavers, it is important to have trees and shrubs of soft deciduous trees along the banks of a reservoir, as well as an abundance of aquatic and coastal herbaceous vegetation that makes up their diet. Beavers are excellent swimmers and divers. Large lungs and liver provide them with such reserves of air and arterial blood that beavers can stay under water for 10-15 minutes, swimming up to 750 m during this time. On land, beavers are quite clumsy.

Beavers live alone or in families. Complete family consists of 5-8 individuals: a married couple and young beavers - the offspring of the past and current years. A family plot is sometimes occupied by the family for many generations. A small pond is occupied by one family or single beaver. On larger bodies of water, the length of the family plot along the shore ranges from 0.3 to 2.9 km. Beavers rarely move more than 200 m away from water. The length of the area depends on the amount of food. In areas rich in vegetation, areas may touch each other and even intersect. Beavers mark the boundaries of their territory with the secretion of their musk glands - beaver stream. Marks are applied to special mounds of mud, silt and branches 30 cm high and up to 1 m wide. Beavers communicate with each other using odorous marks, poses, tail strikes on the water and whistle-like calls. When in danger, a swimming beaver slaps its tail loudly on the water and dives. The clap serves as an alarm signal to all beavers within earshot.

Beaver trail

Beavers are active at night and at dusk. In summer, they leave their homes at dusk and work until 4-6 am. In the fall, when the preparation of feed for the winter begins, the working day lengthens to 10-12 hours. In winter, activity decreases and shifts to daylight hours; At this time of year, beavers almost never appear on the surface. At temperatures below −20 °C, animals remain in their homes.

Huts and dams

Beavers live in burrows or huts. The entrance to a beaver's home is always located under water. Beavers dig burrows in steep banks; they are a complex labyrinth with 4-5 entrances. The walls and ceiling of the hole are carefully leveled and compacted. The living chamber inside the hole is located at a depth of no more than 1 m. The width of the living chamber is a little more than a meter, the height is 40-50 centimeters. The floor must be 20 centimeters above the water level. If the water in the river rises, the beaver also raises the floor, scraping soil from the ceiling. Sometimes the ceiling of the hole is destroyed and in its place a flooring of branches and brushwood is built, turning the hole into a transitional type of shelter - a semi-hut. In the spring, during high water, beavers build nests on the tops of bushes from branches and twigs with a bedding of dry grass.

Traces of beaver work

Huts are built in places where digging a hole is impossible - on low, swampy banks and in shallows. Beavers rarely begin building new housing before the end of August. The huts have the appearance of a cone-shaped pile of brushwood, held together by silt and earth, up to 1-3 m high and up to 10-12 m in diameter. The walls of the hut are carefully coated with silt and clay, so that it turns into a real fortress, impregnable to predators; air enters through the ceiling. Despite popular belief, beavers apply clay using their front paws, not their tail (the tail serves only as a rudder). Inside the hut there are manholes into the water and a platform rising above the water level. With the first frost, beavers additionally insulate their huts with a new layer of clay. In winter, the temperature in the huts remains above zero, the water in the holes does not freeze, and beavers have the opportunity to go out into the under-ice layer of the reservoir. In severe frosts there is steam above the huts, which is a sign of habitation. Sometimes in the same beaver settlement there are both huts and burrows. Beavers are very clean and never litter their homes with leftover food or excrement.

In reservoirs with changing water levels, as well as on small streams and rivers, beaver families build their famous dams (dams). This allows them to raise, maintain and regulate the water level in a reservoir. Dams are built below the beaver town from tree trunks, branches and brushwood, held together by clay, silt, pieces of driftwood and other materials that beavers bring in their teeth or front paws. If the reservoir has a fast current and there are stones at the bottom, they are also used as building material. The weight of stones can reach 15-18 kg.

Beaver Dam (Vologda Region)

For the construction of the dam, places where trees grow closer to the edge of the shore are selected. Construction begins with beavers vertically sticking branches and trunks into the bottom, strengthening the gaps with branches and reeds, filling the voids with silt, clay and stones. They often use a tree that has fallen into the river as a supporting frame, gradually covering it on all sides with building material. Sometimes branches in beaver dams take root, giving them additional strength. The usual length of the dam is 20-30 m, width at the base is 4-6 m, at the crest - 1-2 m; the height can reach 4.8 m, although usually 2 m. The old dam can easily support the weight of a person. The record in the construction of dams belongs, however, not to ordinary beavers, but to Canadian beavers - the dam they built on the river. Jefferson (Montana), reached a length of 700 m. The shape of the dam depends on the speed of the current - where it is slow, the dam is almost straight; on fast rivers it is curved towards the flow. If the current is very strong, beavers build small additional dams further up the river. The dam is often provided with a drain to prevent it from being breached by floods. On average, it takes a beaver family about a week to build a 10 m dam. Beavers carefully monitor the safety of the dam and patch it if it leaks. Sometimes several families working in shifts participate in the construction.

Beaver Dam (Northern California)

A major contribution to the study of beaver behavior during dam construction was made by the Swedish ethologist Wilson () and the French zoologist Richard (,). It turned out that the main stimulus for construction is the sound of flowing water. Possessing excellent hearing, beavers accurately determined where the sound had changed, which meant changes had occurred in the structure of the dam. At the same time, they did not even pay attention to the lack of water - the beavers reacted in the same way to the sound of water recorded on a tape recorder. Further experiments showed that sound, apparently, is not the only stimulus. Thus, beavers clogged a pipe laid through a dam with silt and branches, even if it ran along the bottom and was “inaudible.” At the same time, it remains not entirely clear how beavers distribute responsibilities among themselves during collective work.

A canal dug by beavers

To build and prepare food, beavers cut down trees, gnawing them at the base, gnawing off branches, then dividing the trunk into parts. A beaver fells an aspen with a diameter of 5-7 cm in 5 minutes; a tree with a diameter of 40 cm is felled and cut up overnight, so that by morning only a sanded stump and a pile of shavings remains at the place where the animal works. The trunk of a tree gnawed by a beaver becomes characteristic shape"hourglass". A beaver gnaws, rising on its hind legs and leaning on its tail. Its jaws act like a saw: to fell a tree, the beaver rests its upper incisors on its bark and begins to quickly move its lower jaw from side to side, making 5-6 movements per second. The beaver's incisors are self-sharpening: only the front side is covered with enamel, the back side consists of less hard dentin. When a beaver chews on something, the dentin wears down faster than the enamel, so the leading edge of the tooth remains sharp all the time.

Beavers eat some of the branches of a fallen tree on the spot, while others are demolished and towed or floated across the water to their home or to the site of dam construction. Every year, walking the same routes for food and building materials, they trample paths on the shore that are gradually filled with water - beaver canals. They float wood food along them. The length of the channel reaches hundreds of meters with a width of 40-50 cm and a depth of up to 1 m. Beavers always keep the channels clean.

Nutrition

A tree nibbled by a beaver

Beaver "dining room" in an aspen forest. Ivanovo region, Savinsky district

Beavers are strictly herbivorous. They feed on the bark and shoots of trees, preferring aspen, willow, poplar and birch, as well as various herbaceous plants (water lily, egg capsule, iris, cattail, reed, etc., up to 300 items). The abundance of softwood trees is necessary condition their habitat. Hazel, linden, elm, bird cherry and some other trees are of minor importance in their diet. Alder and oak are not eaten, but are used for buildings. The daily amount of food accounts for up to 20% of a beaver's weight. Large teeth and a powerful bite allow beavers to easily cope with solid plant food. Cellulose-rich foods are digested with the participation of intestinal microflora. Typically, the beaver consumes only a few tree species; To switch to a new diet, it requires an adaptation period, during which microorganisms adapt to the new diet.

In summer, the proportion of herbaceous food in the beaver diet increases. In autumn, beavers prepare wood food for the winter. Beavers store their reserves in water, where they retain their nutritional qualities until February. The volume of reserves can be huge - up to 60-70 cubic meters per family. To prevent food from freezing into the ice, beavers usually heat it below the water level under steep overhanging banks. Thus, even after the pond freezes, food remains available to the beavers under the ice.

Reproduction

Beaver with cub

Beavers are monogamous and the female is dominant. Offspring are born once a year. The mating season lasts from mid-January to the end of February; Mating occurs in the water under the ice. Pregnancy lasts 105-107 days. Cubs (1-6 per litter) will be born in April - May. They are semi-sighted, well-furred, and weigh on average 0.45 kg. After 1-2 days they can already swim; the mother trains the beaver cubs by literally pushing them into the underwater corridor. At the age of 3-4 weeks, beaver cubs switch to feeding on leaves and soft stems of grass, but the mother continues to feed them with milk until 3 months. Grown-up young animals usually do not leave their parents for another 2 years. Only at 2 years old do young beavers reach sexual maturity and move out.

In captivity, a beaver lives up to 35 years, in the wild 10-17 years.

The impact of beavers on ecology

The appearance of beavers in rivers and especially their construction of dams has a beneficial effect on the ecology of aquatic and riverine biotopes. Numerous mollusks and aquatic insects settle in the resulting spill, which in turn attract muskrats and waterfowl. Birds on their feet bring fish eggs. Fish, caught in favorable conditions, begins to multiply. Trees felled by beavers serve as food for hares and many ungulates, which gnaw the bark from the trunks and branches. The sap flowing from undermined trees in the spring is loved by butterflies and ants, followed by birds. Beavers are protected by muskrats; muskrats often live in their huts along with their owners. Dams help purify water, reducing its turbidity; silt lingers in them.

At the same time, beaver dams can cause damage to human buildings. There are known cases when spills caused by beavers flooded and washed away streets and railroad tracks and even caused crashes.

Population status and economic importance

Beavers have long been hunted for their beautiful and durable fur. In addition to valuable fur, they produce beaver stream, used in perfumery and medicine. Beaver meat is edible; however, they are natural carriers of salmonellosis pathogens. (It’s interesting that in Catholic tradition Beaver meat is considered lean, since the beaver, according to church canons, was considered a fish due to its scaly tail.)

As a result of predatory fishing, the common beaver was on the verge of extinction: by the beginning of the 20th century, only 6-8 isolated populations remained (in the Rhone, Elbe, Don, Dnieper basins, in the Northern Trans-Urals, the upper reaches of the Yenisei), with a total of 1200 animals. To preserve this valuable animal, a number of effective measures have been taken to protect and restore numbers in European countries. They began with a ban on beaver hunting, established in 1845 in Norway. By 1998, the beaver population in Europe and Russia was estimated at 430,000.

Common beaver has minimum risk status on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The West Siberian and Tuvan subspecies of the common beaver are listed in the Red Book of Russia. The main threat to it at present comes from land reclamation measures, water pollution and the construction of hydroelectric power stations. Detergents that pollute water bodies wash away the natural protective layer and deteriorate the quality of beaver fur.

Beavers in Russia

where the shore of the Grand Duke is adjacent to the boyars, here the beavers drive. And the beavers of the Grand Duke and the boyars and divide the beavers according to the old times, but the boyars do not keep nets and rods and sedges and do not set up logs and koshes. And where the prince’s or boyar’s shore is special, but the Grand Duke’s shore did not come, then they set up logs and ladles, and keep dogs, and catch beavers as best they can.

The traces or tools left behind for catching beavers imposed an obligation on the verv (community) to either look for the thief or pay a fine. In those days, beavers were caught with nets and traps. Later, by the 17th century, the number of beavers had already noticeably decreased, and their fishing moved mainly to Siberia. In 1635, it was already forbidden to set traps for beavers. In the Trade Book of the 16th century, the usual price for a black beaver is 2 rubles. Judging by the degree of collection of duties (1586, Novgorod), beaver was approximately 1.3 times more valuable than sable, since a duty was charged for 30 beavers, as for 40 sables. At the end of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich, a dozen beavers in wholesale cost from 8 to 30 rubles. Their fur was used primarily for women's hats, necklaces, and the trims of women's fur coats, but apparently was not used for men's fur coats.

There are two types of beavers in nature: ordinary beaver and Canadian. The first species lives in Eurasia, the second in North America. These animals have close family ties with proteins. Certain structural similarities between the lower jaw and the skull indicate commonality. At the same time, the behavior of these representatives of the rodent order varies significantly. The beaver lives only near water. She is his native element. It cannot exist in any other environment. This applies to both Canadian and Eurasian animals. Both species have certain differences, and it is not for nothing that they were separated into separate populations.

Differences between Canadian and common beavers

Externally, representatives of two different species are very similar to each other. But Eurasian beaver is larger. He has a larger and less rounded head. The muzzle is more graceful, so to speak, and shorter. The undercoat is shorter and the tail is narrower than that of the Canadian. The limbs are shorter, so the Eurasian is less adapted to walking on its hind legs. Common beavers have longer nasal bones. The nasal openings are triangular in shape. Canadians have it oval. The anal glands of the Eurasian are larger. The color of the fur also varies.

Almost 70% of common beavers have brown or light brown fur. Chestnut shade is present in 20% of Eurasians. Dark brown has 8%, and pure black only 4%. Among Canadians, half of all beavers sport light brown skins. 25% boasts a reddish-brown tint. Brown skins are worn by 20%, and black by the remaining 5%.

The two species differ in the number of chromosomes. Canadians have 40, and Eurasians have 48. Despite this, people have made many attempts to crossbreed representatives of different continents. Moreover, the females were from Europe, and the males were from America. As a result, females either did not give birth at all or gave birth to dead cubs. From this we can conclude that interspecific reproduction is impossible. These populations are separated from each other not only by thousands of kilometers of ocean surface, but also by DNA features.

Beaver sizes and appearance

In beavers, females are larger than males. They dominate over males. Canadian beaver weighs from 15 to 35 kg. The usual weight is 20 kg with a body length of about 1 meter. These animals grow throughout their lives, so old beavers can reach a weight of 45 kg. The common or Eurasian beaver has a body weight of 30-32 kg with a body length of 1-1.3 meters. The usual body height is 35 cm.

The animals' bodies are squat. There are 5 fingers on the limbs. There are membranes between them. The claws are flat. The tail is shaped like an oar. Its length does not exceed 30 cm. It is usually 10-12 cm wide. There is no hair on the tail. It is covered with horny plates, between which sparse hairs emerge. In the middle of the tail, a horny protrusion stretches along its entire length, reminiscent of a ship's keel. The ears are short, the eyes are small. The undercoat is dense, the guard hairs are coarse. The fur is beautiful, practical and in commercial demand.

Reproduction and lifespan

Beavers mate for life. Only death can separate the betrothed. Mating season falls in winter. Mating occurs in water. The gestation period for the common beaver is 107 days, for the Canadian beaver it is 128 days. There are from 2 to 6 cubs in a litter. Their usual weight reaches 400 grams. Milk feeding lasts 3 months. Babies begin to swim a week after birth. In males, puberty occurs at 3 years. Most females also at 3 years old. Every fifth female is capable of reproducing offspring at 2 years. The lifespan of beavers in nature is 20-25 years. In favorable conditions, the animal lives up to 35 years.

Behavior and nutrition

The beaver is a herbivore. He eats sedge and water lilies with pleasure. It gnaws the bark of aspen, poplar, willow, alder, birch, and maple. But, in any case, young shoots tempt him more. At first glance, it may seem that these rodents cause surrounding nature irreparable harm. But this is a mistaken opinion. Animals bring undoubted benefits to the ecosystem by creating wetlands. They are simply necessary for many other species of animals.

Beavers cut down trees, but not just anywhere, but in certain places, from which it is very convenient to drag heavy trunks to the river. The animals gnaw off the bark, branches, and leaves, and the trunks are used to build a dam. It is thanks to this that dams are created. Various insects settle in them, thereby attracting numerous species of birds. Birds bring fish eggs on their feathers and legs. Thus, fish appear in the dams.

Water, in turn, seeping through such structures is cleared of heavy suspended matter and silt. Many plants die in dams. That is, a large amount of dead wood appears. It is necessary for certain types of animals and plants. Trees damaged by beavers also serve as food for ungulates. That is, nature only benefits from the activity of rodents, but humans lose. The created dams can overflow and destroy crops, as well as erode highways and railway embankments.

The construction of dams by beavers is a different matter. These amazing rodents live in burrows or special “houses” that they make themselves. Burrows are dug in steep banks. They are long and represent a whole labyrinth with several entrances. The floor in such burrows is slightly above the water level. If the river floods, the animals scrape the earth from the ceiling and thus “raise” the floor.

In addition to burrows, beavers build “houses.” In the shallows, they collect dry tree branches in a heap and cover them with clay, earth and silt. A free space is created inside the heap, rising above the water. It is entered from under the water. The height of such a structure reaches 3 meters and the diameter is 10 meters. The walls of the “house” are very strong. They serve as excellent protection against predatory animals. When constructing their homes, animals work with their front paws. In preparation for cold weather, an additional layer of clay and earth is placed on the walls. Therefore in winter months in such structures the temperature is always above zero, and the water in the manholes does not freeze. Beavers maintain perfect order in their homes. It never happens in them food waste and excrement.

The beaver is a social animal, so all rodents form families. Usually there are up to 10 individuals in one family. These are married couples and young animals that have not yet reached puberty. One family can live on the same plot for a century. The length of such a plot of land along the coast reaches 3-4 km. Rodents rarely move more than 200-300 meters from the shore. Their whole life is connected with the river. There are also solitary beavers - these are young, sexually mature bachelors who have just left their family. They live in burrows and eventually start a family.

Dam construction

Why do beavers build dams?? In order for them to have more water. Very often, a family of beavers takes a liking to a small stream or small river. To raise the water level, rodents build dams. As a result, the river turns into a small lake, and for animals this is a real haven. In the water they mate, enter their homes and, naturally, protect their lives from predatory animals. A beaver can stay under water for a maximum of 15 minutes. In case of obvious danger, such results of scuba diving are very helpful for rodents.

First, the beavers decide on the construction site. Preference is given to those places where the opposite banks are separated from each other at the shortest distance. The presence of trees near the shore also plays an important role. This is the main building material. The animals stick the gnawed trunks vertically into the river bottom. Large stones are placed between them and covered with silt. Branches are piled on the above-water part. They are held together with clay. It turns out to be a very strong structure.

The length of the dam can reach up to 30 meters. At the base it is wider, about 5-6 meters. It narrows with height. At the very top the dam reaches a width of 2 meters. The height can be 3, 4, or 5 meters. History knows of cases where beavers built dams 500 and even 850 meters long. In case of strong currents, additional dams are built and special drains are made so that the structure does not collapse when the river floods. Rodents constantly monitor the condition of the dam. Minor leaks and damage are immediately repaired.

Beaver population

As for the number of Canadian beavers, there were once about 100 million of them in North America. TO end of the 19th century centuries, rodents were almost completely exterminated. From a huge population, only pitiful crumbs remained. By the beginning of the 20th century, bans on catching these animals were introduced. Today there are more than 10 million rodents in America. In Eurasia the situation was even worse. At the beginning of the 20th century, approximately 1,200 poor animals lived in vast territories. After 100 years, thanks to the bans, their number increased to 700 thousand. In the majority European countries The common beaver received a rebirth, since in these regions it was exterminated back in the 17th-19th centuries.

One of the largest representatives of a large order of rodents, most interesting creature not only in the middle latitudes, but in general among all the animals inhabiting the Earth. The beaver is valued for its durable, beautiful skin (learn about) and the secretions of the preputial glands - beaver stream, which is a raw material for the perfume industry. Our article will tell you more about these animals and their habits.

Beavers in Nature

Beavers are hidden, crepuscular and night image life. These animals are especially famous for their construction activities. Beaver lodges, dams, underground passages, canals and other structures sometimes amaze not only with their size, but also with some special meaning of what was erected. Observing the life of beavers, you involuntarily come to the conclusion that they undoubtedly have complex and original reflexes that are on the verge of the reasonable. In addition, beavers are to some extent transformers of nature, since under the influence of their construction activities, tiny rivers sometimes turn into good water areas suitable for settling some fur-bearing animals, waterfowl (o), fish and other representatives of the animal world.

Types of beavers

There are 2 types of beavers - European and Canadian. The Canadian beaver is slightly larger than the European beaver, has more developed building instincts and is more fertile. So,

In litters of Canadian beavers, the number of cubs is on average 4, while in European beavers it ranges from 2-3. The maximum number of cubs in a litter known for the Canadian species is 7-8, and according to some data even 9. For European species this value does not exceed 5.

The fur color of Canadian beavers is dominated by quite noticeable orange tones against a general dark brown background. In all other respects, both species are very similar, and acquaintance with one of them allows you to get an impression of appearance and the lifestyle of another.

By the beginning of this century, as a result of immoderate intensive fishing, the number of beavers everywhere was greatly undermined, and in some places it declined catastrophically. Stocks of the European species were particularly hard hit. Subsequent long-term bans on the hunting of beavers, their mass relocation to bodies of water unoccupied by them, and other measures carried out in many countries had a positive effect on the number of these animals.
But the role of the European beaver in the hunting industry of Europe and Asia is so far much more modest.

What do beavers look like?

The beaver's appearance is especially characterized by its unusual tail, which resembles the rowing part of an oar lying in a horizontal plane. Unlike the head and body, which are covered with thick underfur and rather sparse guard hairs, the beaver's tail is covered with relatively small diamond-shaped horny scales. And, if the fur reliably protects the beaver from the cold and, to some extent, from mechanical injuries, then the tail is at the same time the rudder during the movement of the animal in the water, and a support when gnawing trees, and that signaling device, when hitting the water, the beaver warns their relatives about the danger. Finally, it is an organ that helps regulate body temperature through the constriction and dilation of blood vessels.

Beaver limbs

Beaver color

The fur color of European beavers ranges from light brown to dark brown and black. Dark-colored animals are more valued. Experts also found that

from black parents only black beavers will be born, from light brown ones - only light brown ones, parents colored dark brown or having different fur colors give birth to offspring colored in all the color variants of the parent pairs and their ancestors.

Beaver sizes

The size of adult beavers, measured from the beginning of the nose to the end of the tail, reaches 120-126 centimeters, average weight– 18-20 kilograms, with a maximum – up to 28-30 kilograms.

Beaver habitat

Beavers live along the banks of rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, in peat quarries, and in swamps. With a low population density of land, beavers have the opportunity to choose a place for settlement and therefore usually occupy secluded, quiet, deep reservoirs, densely overgrown with willows and other deciduous trees and shrubs, with a sufficient selection of herbaceous plants that they readily eat. After reaching a high population density, beavers settle in fast-flowing sections of rivers, in strongly drying reservoirs that are less favorable for habitat. For example,

In North America, beavers have long inhabited relatively quiet areas of semi-mountain rivers and streams, climbing mountains to a height of up to 3 thousand meters above sea level.

In places where the banks of water bodies are quite high, beavers dig holes for themselves. In reservoirs with low banks, animals settle in root plexuses growing along the banks of trees, or build huts for themselves.

Beaver burrows have one or more lairs - extensions of underground passages lined with wood shavings. Underground passages are a complex network of tunnels, 25-40 centimeters in diameter, the exits of which are usually hidden under water.

Beaver lodges are cone-shaped structures made from tree trunks and branches held together with silt. Usually huts appear on the sites of collapsed burrows or destroyed cobbles. The exits from the huts, of which there are often several, are also hidden under water. How more years There is a hut in which beavers live, the larger its size. Specialists had to encounter huts up to 1.5-2 meters high, with a width of 4-5 meters or more. In such huts there are several beaver lairs located on 2-3 floors. If a family of beavers lives in a pond long time, it may have about 10 burrows or 2-3 residential huts, often in combination with a system of visited burrows and cobbles.

IN summer time the temperature in the nesting chambers does not rise above +22 degrees, and in winter rarely drops below -4 degrees. Significantly smaller temperature fluctuations observed in the beaver's home than in the outdoor environment allow these animals, which are quite sensitive to cold, to live even beyond the Arctic Circle.

Beaver lifestyle

Beavers live in families, usually consisting of 2 adult animals, babies of the current year of birth and last year's young. In total, a family can have 6-8 animals. 2-year-olds, as a rule, leave their parental family in the spring, sometimes in the fall, and form their own new settlement. In places with limited conditions for settlement, you can find 2-3 or even 4-year-old animals in a family. Such a family can have up to 16 beavers. On the contrary, where conditions for the resettlement of growing young animals are not limited, one-year-old animals are sometimes resettled from their families.

During droughts and catastrophic shallowing of water bodies, beavers from several neighboring families are forced to gather where there is still water. Sometimes in such places there are up to 16-20 or more beavers. It is typical that animals in trouble treat each other relatively peacefully, whereas in other conditions fierce fights can be observed between beavers from other families.

Beaver breeding

Beavers reach sexual maturity at 2-3 years of age - European beavers usually reach sexual maturity in the 3rd year, while Canadian beavers reach sexual maturity in the 2nd year. They reproduce once a year. The mating period for beavers living in middle lane, occurs at the end of December - beginning of April, the height of the rut is in January-February. At this time, animals often come to the surface, occasionally leaving beaver discharge on their forays. The act of mating in beavers takes place in water, under ice. The female's pregnancy lasts from 103 to 107, with an average of 105 days. Therefore, the childbearing period usually occurs in May-June.

Beaver cubs are born fully formed, sighted, and covered with soft fur. Where animals are born early, even during the spring flood, newborns can be observed in temporary shelters. 2-4 day old babies have difficulty moving around the den, almost unable to rise on their feet and staggering from side to side. Beavers born in permanent dwellings, especially in burrows, are difficult to detect.

Until the age of 2-3 weeks, animals are almost unable to dive, since their weight does not exceed the weight of the water they displace.

At about 1 month, the beavers begin to appear on the surface, where they eat young shoots of shrub plants and grass. At 3-4 months, young beavers are already completely independent animals, with all the habits of adult animals.

What do beavers eat?

Beavers feed exclusively on plant foods. The total list of their food plants is close to 300, but the basis of nutrition is no more than 10-20 species of trees and shrubs, and 20-30 species of grasses. Basically, these are various willows, aspen, birch, egg capsule, poplar, water lily, sedge, cattail, reed, arrowhead... In trees and shrubs, animals gnaw and eat the green, non-suberized part of the bark, tips of branches, leaves, in grasses - stems, leaves, flowers and sometimes rhizomes.

The ability of beavers to create winter food reserves is well known. More often, such reserves are equal to 10-25 loose cubic meters, but some families haul up to 50 and even up to 100 cubic meters of trunks and branches of trees, stems and rhizomes of aquatic and semi-aquatic plants. At the same time, there are families who have no winter food reserves at all.

Previously, it was generally accepted that beavers eat herbaceous plants mainly in the warm season, and in winter they use for food only the bark of trees and shrubs stored in the fall and chewed on the surface during thaws. However, recent observations show that this is not the case. Aquatic and coastal grasses serve as a very important aid in winter nutrition beavers, and for some families they play main role. All this helps to understand why some beaver families do not have food reserves, and what they eat in winter. In addition, it should be borne in mind that the supply of food stored under the ice runs out or spoils at the end of January-February, and from this time the animals completely switch to pasture.

Description of the animal.

The river beaver is the largest rodent in the fauna of Russia. Large specimens of beaver reach a length with a tail of about 125 cm and a body weight of 25-30 kg. The beaver's body is massive, rather awkward and baggy. The front and hind paws each have five toes, with the hind paws being much larger and equipped with a swimming membrane, while on the front paws it is only rudimentary. The toes are equipped with strong, large claws that are adapted for digging the ground. The beaver's tail is very original: more or less rounded at the base, it is strongly flattened horizontally in the middle and final part and is completely covered with horny scales, between which there are sparse hairs. The head is large, round and with a blunt muzzle. The ears are small, covered with hair; when diving, the auditory opening can close. The eyes are small with a vertical pupil and have a third eyelid, or nictitating membrane, which, being transparent and covering the eyes when diving, protects them from the direct action of water on them, without at the same time depriving them of the ability to see surrounding objects under water. Upper lip it is bifurcated and in the section of the lips very strongly developed, powerful, chisel-shaped, orange-colored incisors are visible.

In the groin area of beavers there are paired glands that secrete a good-smelling, oily, brownish liquid called “beaver stream.” The fur is very thick, with a fluffy undercoat and a shiny, rough coat. The color of beaver fur varies from reddish-brown to almost black.

Lifestyle.

In their lives, river beavers are closely connected with water, although they spend most of their time outside it, but never settle far from water. Their habitat is forest rivers, river backwaters and forest lakes.

Beavers are social animals and usually settle in colonies close to each other where they are not disturbed. They live either in burrows or in “huts”. Beavers are excellent builders; their structures can be very complex. Beaver seas are quite long and complex. One of the entrances to the burrow is always placed under water, and one or more others open onto land. There are large burrows that have several underwater and land exits. In the depths of the hole there is a nesting chamber lined with finely gnawed bark and tree wood. In places where the banks are not suitable for digging holes, beavers build “huts.” These “huts” are of considerable size, reaching several meters in diameter and more than one and a half meters in height. These structures have the appearance of a conical dugout made from stumps of branches and trunks of thin trees, held together by silt, earth and aquatic plants. The “hut” usually has several entrances located under water, and above the water level there is a large living chamber. To ensure that the exits from the hut or hole are always under water, beavers collectively build dams that serve to raise the water level, and for this they often use large trees, up to 50-60 cm thick, skillfully cutting them with their powerful cutters, dumping them in the water and floating them to the site of the dam's construction. However, such dams are built only where beavers live in large colonies and where they are little disturbed.

In water, the river beaver swims and dives beautifully, but on land it moves awkwardly, slowly, waddling, dragging not only its tail, but also its thick belly.

Beavers are nocturnal. During the day, as a rule, they are in the hole and only at dusk, leaving their shelter, they begin to work and feed. A beaver spooked on the water strikes it forcefully with its tail, making a characteristic splash, and dives deeply, appearing again at a great distance.

Nutrition.

Beavers feed only on plant foods. The basis of their diet is the bark and young branches of trees with soft wood, such as willow, willow, aspen, poplar, and in the north also birch (but in no case alder). In addition, beavers eat some of the herbaceous aquatic plants and especially their succulent and fleshy roots and rhizomes.

Wintering.

In winter, beavers do not hibernate, but they rarely come to the surface of the earth - only during thaws. All beaver activity in winter takes place in a hole or hut and under the ice of a reservoir. For the winter, beavers make large supplies of food for themselves from twigs and branches, which they store by strengthening them at the bottom of reservoirs near the entrance to their homes.

Reproduction.

Beavers breed once a year. Their estrus occurs in late winter and early spring, and its duration is quite extended - from January to March. The gestation period is 105-107 days. The number of young in a litter is usually from 2 to 4. The young are born already covered with hair, with with open eyes and develop very quickly, a few days after birth they are able to swim, but they do not move on to independent life so quickly. The beaver is a very gentle mother and continues to care for the young even after finishing milk feeding, which lasts about two months. Beavers reach sexual maturity at the age of three.

Beavers change their hair coat, like many other semi-aquatic animals, continuously, without pronounced periods of molting, but its intensity increases in spring and autumn. The river beaver, as has been said, is a very gifted animal, as evidenced by its remarkable building and social instincts. In captivity, it is perfectly tamed and exhibits good memory and attachment to a person. Due to their hidden semi-aquatic lifestyle, beavers have few enemies among animals and birds. In winter, a beaver can become a victim, and, but this happens relatively rarely. Its most dangerous enemy is the otter, which often attacks young beavers.

Economic importance.

Beaver fur is extremely valuable and ranks among the first in price among the furs of animals all over the world. Its value is determined by its beauty and very high durability in wear. In addition to fur, beavers produce valuable “beaver stream”, extracted from the inguinal glands. “Beaver stream” has a strong, pleasant odor and is used in medicine as an aphrodisiac and tonic, and in the perfume industry as an aromatic product.

In foreign trade ancient Rus' beaver fur played a very important role, and only the predatory capitalist economy negated the commercial significance of the beaver not only in our country, but also in Western Europe and North America.

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 appearance animal, it is worth noting one fact. People most often, when they say the words beaver and beaver, mean the same meaning. But it’s 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. In separate groups beavers live 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 semi-aquatic image life. 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, this list I could go on for a very long time.

What do beavers eat? Large number These animals need 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 autumn period All beavers begin carefully preparing woody food for the winter. Throughout the winter, beavers consume mainly food stored in advance. Beavers place them in water so that they retain food throughout the winter. healthy vitamins and microelements.

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

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.
This rodent friendly enough. But at the same time he 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.