Busy Beavers

Beavers are a force of nature. And they’re worth learning to live with. Learn how they build up the abundance and grandeur of American landscapes as well as native species richness and diversity.

Duration:

5 minutes, 35 seconds

Beavers can get a bad rap. Some people consider them pests because they dam up waterways and take up a lot of space. But beaver activity creates habitat for a diversity of plants and animals and helps improve water quality. So it’s worth it to work with beavers and coexist. Beaver are ecosystems engineers that have a positive ripple effect on our environment.

You Can Help

Be a flexible neighbor to beavers.

• If beavers are chewing trees, wrap the trees with wire mesh fencing rather than relocating the beaver.
• If a beaver dam on a stream or culvert is causing damaging flooding, protect the culvert with fencing or install a pond leveler.

Learn more in this NOAA Fisheries brochure, “Putting Beavers to Work for You.”

More About Beavers

The beaver is a native species found across North America. They create ponds by felling trees to dam running water. After near complete local extinction (extirpation) in Virginia as a result of the North American fur trade, beaver populations have partially recovered.

Learn more about where beavers live: American Beaver (Castor canadensis) | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and how they behave: Species Spotlight on North American Beaver

Tags: manassas national battlefield park, ncr, beaver, nature, wildlife, wetlands, mammals, hydrology, ecosystem engineers, keystone species