Today is

By: Ikedi Ani-okoye.

The beaver is a nice animal to look at because it is a compact self-sufficient and a busy little creature. Although a member of the rodent family, it is able to do many things that have been acknowledged as being ingenious and a clever example of instinct. An adult beaver weighs between 15 and 34 kilograms, and can be up to 100 cm in length plus 20 cm of tail. The beaver grows a thick coat of brown wool and fur, its underneath is soft and cuddly while the fur on top is long, an oily type fur that throws off water, which keeps the beaver waterproof.

Its two front paws are just like a human hand and has five toes, while the hind feet have five toes but are webbed to help it to swim. The beaver has a wide, flat, scaly, tail, that is need as a rudder when it is swimming, and long, sharp, orange-coloured incisor teeth with so that it can  gnaw down trees.

When beavers are swimming under the water they can close their mouth, nose, and ears to stop water from getting in and remain submerged for a number of minutes. Its lips can be closed behind its incisor teeth to enable it to gnaw under water and build up its habitat.

Today the beaver is located in parts of North America, Scandinavia, and Eastern Europe. Beavers also used to be located in the British Isles up until about the twelfth century, characteristically building their dams across rivers. Now beavers are not found in the British Isles but can be found in captivity, living in British zoos.

Because the beaver is wild it works mostly at night. It will cut down logs during the spring and early summer, allowing the logs to lie until the autumn then it will build or repairs its home. The beaver lives in a lodge - a mound of sticks, moss and stones with a domed roof plastered with mud. The lodge looks like a giant hedgehog with wooden prickles. The beaver lodge can be found on the bank of a stream, at the end of a dam or on a pile of logs, which are placed at the bottom of the river.

Beavers have to be extremely careful to avoid enemies. When the beaver is working outside the lodge it can be the victim to many animals. It has a distinct smell that comes from a pouch in its upper tail, in it castor is contained- leaving a musky smelling substance - and scent marks as it works.

A number one enemy of the beaver was man. Man hunted the beaver for to get its fur and teeth and the beaver nearly became extinct. The fur was used to make hats and coats and its teeth to make sharp chisels or knives. Its castor was also stored and made into perfumes. Today the beaver is a protected species and its numbers are increasing.