The Beaver: Its Life and Impact
Dietland Muller-Schwarze
Abstract
Beavers can and do dramatically change the landscape. The beaver is a keystone species—their skills as foresters and engineers create and maintain ponds and wetlands that increase biodiversity, purify water, and prevent large-scale flooding. Biologists have long studied their daily and seasonal routines, family structures, and dispersal patterns. As human development encroaches into formerly wild areas, property owners and government authorities need new, nonlethal strategies for dealing with so-called nuisance beavers. At the same time, the complex behavior of beavers intrigues visitors at pa ... More
Beavers can and do dramatically change the landscape. The beaver is a keystone species—their skills as foresters and engineers create and maintain ponds and wetlands that increase biodiversity, purify water, and prevent large-scale flooding. Biologists have long studied their daily and seasonal routines, family structures, and dispersal patterns. As human development encroaches into formerly wild areas, property owners and government authorities need new, nonlethal strategies for dealing with so-called nuisance beavers. At the same time, the complex behavior of beavers intrigues visitors at parks and other wildlife viewing sites because it is relatively easy to observe. This book gathers a wealth of scientific knowledge about both the North American and Eurasian beaver species. It is designed to satisfy the curiosity and answer the questions of anyone with an interest in these animals.
Keywords:
beaver,
beaver pond,
wetlands,
biodiversity,
flooding,
dispersal,
nuisance beaver,
wildlife
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2011 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780801450105 |
| Published to Cornell Scholarship Online: August 2016 |
DOI:10.7591/cornell/9780801450105.001.0001 |
Authors
Affiliations are at time of print publication.
Dietland Muller-Schwarze, author
Professor of Environmental and Forest Biology, the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
More
Less
