Beavers: Radical Rodents and Ecosystem Engineers

Beavers: Radical Rodents and Ecosystem Engineers — page 3
A swimming beaver is like an iceberg most of its mass is hidden underwater GARYSFRP GETTY IMAGES 2 The beaver was also observing me and maybe it was talking to me Several times it emitted a low rumbling sound like a cross between a growl and a purr It was too bad I didn’t speak its language My new acquaintance then swam over to the dam and clambered onto it It waddled along the top of the dam seemingly unconcerned by the trickling water After pausing for a moment to munch on a bush it belly flopped back into the lake and paddled away small black eyes And finally the flaring nostrils When the beaver had paddled almost to the shore it started cruising back and forth in front of me Peering down into the water I saw how it steered with its tail and propelled itself with slow kicks of its big webbed hind feet first one foot and then the other When the beaver reached the shore opposite me it emerged again It sat upright on the bank with its tail folded underneath its rotund body and began to groom itself I watched through my binoculars as the beaver ran its front paws down its chest belly and sides pressing water out of its thick coat Once it had dried off it spent several minutes rubbing waterproofing oil from its oil glands into its coat Now and then it paused for some vigorous scratching