Beaver

Description

Adult European beavers weight between 23 and 30 kg and have snout-vent lengths of 83 to 102 cm and tail lengths of 30 to 35 cm. The body is plump and stocky and increases in volume towards the back. The head is short, broad and flattened at the top, so that it merges directly into the strong neck muscles and the rump. The eyes and ears, which are very high up, as well as the snout, are above water even when the body is submerged. 

Front and hind legs are short. The front feet are trained for grasping and have five fingers. The hind feet are large and have webbed toes, the second hind toe has a double claw for grooming the fur. The very dense coat is grey to dark brown or black on the underpart, lighter underneath. The tail is flat, broad, hairless and covered with scales. It serves as a control, propulsion organ and fat depot.

Habitat

Like all beavers, they live semi-aquatic and inhabit water bodies and their banks.

The text is a translation of an excerpt from Wikipedia (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europäischer_Biber). On wikipedia the text is available under a „Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike“ licence. Status: 19 August 2021