Science database
KNOWLEDGE BASE
We have gathered decades of scientific research from Great Britain, continental Europe and North America to share with people interested in diving deeper into the world of beavers.
This list of resources is being constantly amended and updated.
Showing 774 articles
The influence of fall-spawning coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) on growth and production of juvenile coho salmon rearing in beaver ponds on the Copper River Delta, Alaska
Published by: Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
8th March 2006
This study looked at how the nutrients provided by the dying parent generation of coho salmon affect young coho salmon in Alaska. They compared fish in three types of beaver pond: those downstream of spawning areas, those not affected by spawning salmon, and those not naturally affected but artificially enriched with salmon carcasses and eggs. The extra nutrients boosted growth rates and condition in some ponds but didn't consistently lead to better survival. This suggests that the nutrient cycle between generations is likely to be more complicated than initially thought.
Use of dawn and dusk sight observations to determine colony size and family composition in Eurasian beaver Castor fiber
Published by: Acta Theriologica
1st March 2006
In this article, researchers tested the accuracy of their methods for counting Eurasian beavers. This is something which was often poorly reported on in beaver science. They found that counts of beavers varied quite considerably according to time of day and even the month of the year. Repeating their counts led to new information which allowed them to adjust their overall estimate of family size. Kits were often undercounted.
Efficacy of Cartridge Type and Projectile Design in the Harvest of Beaver
Published by: Wildlife Society Bulletin
1st March 2006
In this article, researchers compare the impacts of two types of bullet for shooting beavers. These impacts included the damage to the beavers skin and the amount of meat lost in the process. They also estimated that 98% of the beavers in this study died instantly.
From the Field: Efficacy of Tail-Mounted Transmitters for Beaver
Published by: Wildlife Society Bulletin
1st March 2006
In 2001, tail-mounted transmitters were attached to 41 beavers in the USA. Most fell off and some were lost inside lodges. Some of the transmitters that had fallen off were found intact but many had missing antennas, likely chewed off. Overall, tail-mounted transmitters were of limited success in this study and are not recommended for long-term monitoring without significant modifications to the original design. Please note, this resource is not open-access.
Influence of watercourse depth and width on dam‐building behaviour by Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber)
Published by: Journal of Zoology
1st January 2006
This study investigated how stream depth and width affect beavers' dam-building behaviour. In Sweden, researchers measured 39 beaver lodges without dams and 74 dam sites. Lodge sites tended to be deeper and wider than dam sites. A number of possible explanations are given but more research is needed to understand why beavers choose to build or not build a dam in a given spot.