KNOWLEDGE BASE

This article reports on a study of wolf diets in Latvia. From 1997 to 2001, these wolves primarily deer and boar, with some beavers. Their diet varied by season and region, with more wild boar in the east. They ate more diverse foods in summer. Domestic animals were rarely eaten, mainly as carrion in winter. Empty stomachs were common.

This article explored how the image of the beaver in Canadian culture has evolved. It draws on historic accounts of Euro-Canadian colonisers, on modern media representations of beavers in TV and political cartoons, as well as unofficial but widely-used sexual slang. The text argued that these representations reflected mainstream social norms that are central to the nation-building project that is 'Canada'. Please note, this resource is not open-access.

This study followed wood frogs and spotted salamanders in ponds across three states of the USA. Beaver activity created new ponds, enabling both species to move between ponds. The scientists undertook a detailed analysis of how connected the different populations were, aiming to improve amphibian population monitoring programmes, a key part of conservation efforts.

This study looked at how wolves, beavers, plants, and other species are connected and affect each other in Yellowstone National Park, USA. The findings showed that the risk of predation by species like wolves profoundly affects ecosystem structure. Wolf reintroduction helped improve access to willow trees for beavers to eat. Understanding these processes can help improve ecosystem restoration efforts.

In this study, researchers established that the disappearance of beaver ponds has drastically reduced the habitat for coho salmon in a river basin in the USA. They estimated that loss of beaver ponds was the primary cause of summer habitat reducing by 61% and winter habitat by 86%. The study suggests that restoring beaver populations should be part of river restoration efforts.