What animals come to mind when you think about rodents? Mice and rats? Those are rodents. Or maybe chipmunks and squirrels? They are rodents too. Even pets like hamsters, gerbils and guinea pigs are rodents. But some larger animals are rodents as well.
The North American beaver is the largest rodent in North America, and it is one of two beaver species in the world. The other, the Eurasian beaver, is also large. It is similar in size to our local beaver species. It can be found in parts of Europe, and it is the largest rodent on that continent.
While both the North American beaver and the Eurasian beaver are at the top of the list of the world's largest rodents, neither can claim the title. The world's largest rodent is the capybara, which is native to Central and South America.
Capybaras look a little like furry pigs, and they were originally thought to be a part of the pig family. They are most closely related to guinea pigs and another type of rodent called the cavy. They are much larger than guinea pigs, though. They can stand up to 2 feet tall at the shoulder and weigh between 60 pounds and 175 pounds.
Capybaras have a distinct look, and you wouldn't be likely to mistake a beaver for a capybara. However, telling the difference between an American beaver and a Eurasian beaver would be tricky if they didn't live on separate continents. These two rodents are very similar in appearance, and the American beaver descended from the Eurasian beaver.
Eurasian beavers tend to be slightly smaller than their American cousins, but the difference isn’t easily noticeable. The two species share many physical characteristics, including brown fur; long, flat tails; and webbed feet.
A skilled observer may be able to tell the difference between the two beaver species based on a few subtle physical differences. First, Eurasian beavers typically have fur that is a lighter shade of brown than their American cousins. Their tails are also a little more narrow. Less obviously, Eurasian beavers also have longer skulls, and their nasal bones are more triangular in shape.
Words to know
Primarily: For the most part.
Secrete: To produce and discharge a substance.
Subtle: Difficult to understand or perceive.
Vital: Absolutely necessary or important.
Beyond these slight differences in appearance, the two beaver species lead similar lives, just on different continents. Both can be found living in fresh bodies of water like rivers and lakes, and they both are herbivores that eat a variety of plant matter. They primarily eat bark, aquatic plants and leaves.
American and Eurasian beavers are also both considered keystone species. These are plants and animals that play a crucial role in the ecosystems they inhabit because they are critical to the survival of other species in those ecosystems.
Beavers are vital because they create ecosystems through their normal behaviors of building lodges and dams. This creates new habitat for other plants and animals. If beavers were to disappear from a habitat, the entire ecosystem would be altered because it would no longer support the plants and animals that benefited from the beavers’ presence.
Another thing these two beaver species have in common is that they were both nearly hunted to extinction. Eurasian beavers were once common and widespread across Europe and parts of Asia, but today they exist in only pockets of their original range.
Beavers were hunted extensively for their furs as well as their meat and castoreum, a substance they secrete from scent glands. They were gone from England by the 12th century and from Scotland by the 16th century. By 1900 only about 1,200 beavers remained in all of Europe. Since then, the population has somewhat recovered, and beaver populations have been reintroduced in Austria, France, Germany and Scotland.
The beaver population in North America was similarly devastated in the early 19th century. By the early 20th century, beavers were absent from almost all their original range. Just as in Europe, reintroduction efforts have allowed the population to rebound, but not to their previous levels.
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