Of all mammals, the beaver is the most especially fitted to enjoy a
social life. When in captivity and away from its kind, it appears to
possess but a small amount of intelligence; it forms no attachments to
its human companions, and is utterly indifferent to all around it. But
in its native wilds, associated with others of its race, what wondrous
engineering skill it exhibits, and how curious are its domestic
arrangements!
It is essentially a hard worker. Other animals sport and play and amuse
themselves. What young beavers may do inside their lodges, it is
difficult to say; but the elders, from morn till night, and all night
long, labour at their various occupations, evidently feeling that they
were born to toil, and willingly accomplishing their destiny.
The beaver has fitly been selected as the representative animal of
Canada, on account of its industry, perseverance, and hardihood, and the
resolute way in which it overcomes difficulties. Certain conditions of
country are necessary to its existence, and when it does not find these
ready formed, by a wonderful provision of Nature its instinct enables it
to produce them by its own exertions. Where it can find rivers, brooks,
and swampy lakes which maintain an even level throughout the year, the
beaver has a tolerably idle life; but as in most districts the levels of
rivers and lakes are apt to sink at various seasons if left to
themselves,--whenever an emigrant party of beavers have fixed on a new
locality, they set to work to dam up the stream or outlet of the lake,
to prevent a catastrophe which might bring ruin and destruction on their
new colony. In Nova Scotia, as well as in other parts of North America,
large level spaces are found covered with a rich alluvial soil, from
which spring up waving fields of wild grass. From this the human
settler draws an abundant supply of hay for his stock in winter, and
ought to feel deeply indebted to the persevering beaver for the boon.
They are known as "wild meadows," and are of frequent occurrence in the
backwoods. It is evident that they were formed by the following
process:--They are found in valleys through which, in ages past, a brook
trickled. A party of beavers arriving, and finding an abundance of food
on the side of the hills, would set to work to form a dam of sufficient
strength to keep back the stream, till a pond was created, on the edge
of which they might build their dome-shaped habitations. Extensive
spaces in the woods were thus inundated, and the colony of beavers lived
for long years on the banks of their artificial lakes. They, however,
lacking forethought, like many human beings, did not sufficiently look
to the future. In process of time the trees, being destroyed, decayed
and fell; while the soil, washed down from the surrounding hills, filled
up the pond constructed by the industrious animals, and they were
compelled to migrate to some other region, or were destroyed. The dam
being thus left unrepaired, the water drained through it, and the level
space was converted into the rich meadow which has been described.
Beavers' houses, however, are seen in all directions, sometimes on the
banks of these artificial ponds, at others by the sides of large lakes
or rivers. Though varying in size, they all greatly resemble a huge
bird's-nest turned upside down. Some are eight feet in diameter, and
three feet in height; while others are very much larger, being no less
than sixteen to twenty feet in diameter, and nearly eight feet in height
on the outside, and perfectly circular and dome-shaped. The walls and
roofs of these lodges, as they are called, are several feet in
thickness, so that the measurement of the interior chamber is little
more than half that of the exterior. Several beavers inhabit a large
lodge. Their beds, which are separated one from the other, are arranged
round the walls, a space in the centre being left free. The exterior
also presents a very rough appearance, consisting of sticks apparently
thrown loosely together, and entirely denuded of their bark, as also of
branches of trees and bushes closely interwoven and mixed with stones,
gravel, or mud. They are close to the banks, almost overlapping the
water, into which the front part is immersed. The bottom of the stream
or lake is invariably deepened in the channel approaching the entrance,
thus ensuring a free passage below the ice into the structure. The
tunnel is from two to three feet long. In the inner part of the hut the
materials are laid with greater care, and more firmly bound together--
with mud and grass--than on the outer. Even in one of the larger houses
the chamber--for there is but one--is only between two and three feet in
height, though as much as nine feet in diameter. It slopes gently
upwards from the water. Inside there are two levels: the lower one may
be called the hall. On this the animals shake themselves when they
emerge from the subaqueous tunnel; and when dry, clamber up to the upper
story, which consists of an elevated bed of boughs running round the
back of the chamber. It is thickly covered with dry grass and thin
shavings of wood. The whole of the interior is smooth, the ends of the
timbers and brushwood which project inwards being evenly gnawed off.
There are always two entrances--the one serving for summer, and letting
in the light; while another sinks down at a deeper angle, to enable the
owners during winter to get below the water. Beavers are especially
clean animals, and allow no rubbish to remain in their abode; and as
soon as they have nibbled off the bark from the sticks, they carry them
outside, and place them on the roof of their hut, to increase its
thickness, or let them float down the stream.
During the summer they are employed all day in ranging the banks and
cutting provisions for their winter consumption, all their architectural
occupations being carried on at night. Their winter stock of food
consists of short lengths of willow and poplar,--the bark of which only,
however, they eat. These they sink with mud or stones in some quiet
pool near their lodge, and when required for food they dive down below
the ice and bring up as many as are required for family consumption.
Besides their lodge, they form in the neighbourhood a long burrow
sufficiently broad to enable them to turn with ease. The entrance is at
a considerable depth below the surface of the water, and extends from
ten to twenty feet into the bank. This burrow serves as a safe retreat,
should their house be broken into, and thither they immediately fly when
their permanent abode is attacked. In summer they regale themselves on
the roots of the yellow lilies, as well as on other succulent
vegetation, and any fruits the country affords.
But it is time that we should get a look at the curious animal itself.
We may paddle gently in a birch-bark canoe over a calm lake, and conceal
ourselves among the tall grass in some quiet cove where the yellow
water-lilies float on the tranquil surface. Through the still air of
evening, the sound of the distant waterfall reaches our ears. Wood
ducks fly by in vast numbers; the rich glow of the evening sky, still
suffused with the gorgeous hues of the setting sun, is reflected on the
mirror-like expanse of water. Watching with eager eyes, we see at
length the water breaking some forty yards away, and the head and back
of an animal appears in sight. Now another, and then a third, come into
view. After cautiously glancing around, the creatures dive, with a roll
like that of a porpoise, but shortly appear again. Our Indian, pushing
the light canoe from amid the grass, paddles forward with eager strokes.
One of our party fires, and misses, the echoes resounding from the
wood-covered shores, and from island to island, till lost in the
distance; but the cautious animals, forewarned, take good care not to
appear again during that evening. We find that our only prospect of
examining them is by trapping one in the usual Indian fashion, which we
will by-and-by describe.
Mr Beaver, as the Indians are fond of calling the animal, has a body
about three feet long, exclusive of the tail, which is a foot more. He
wears on his back a coat of long shining hair, generally of a light
chestnut colour, but sometimes of a much darker hue, occasionally
perfectly black. Below the hair, next the skin, is a fine, soft,
greyish-brown wool. He may be known at once by his broad horizontal
flattened tail, which is nearly of an oval form, but rises into a slight
convexity on its upper surface, and is covered with scales. His
fore-feet are armed with nails, and serve for the purpose of hands--
indeed, he vies with the monkey in the use he can make of them. The
hind-feet are webbed, and with these--together with his tail, which acts
as a rudder--he is enabled to swim rapidly through the water. The
beaver is a rodent, with a short head and broad blunt snout, and his
incisor teeth are remarkably large and hard, enabling him to bite
through wood with wonderful ease and rapidity. So great is their
hardness, that formerly the Indians were accustomed to use them as
knives for cutting bone and fashioning their horn-tipped spears.
The beaver, it has been said, always chooses banks by the side of a lake
or river of sufficient depth to escape being frozen to the bottom, even
during the hardest frost. Thus, he can at all times obtain a supply of
water, on which his existence depends; indeed, the bark on which he
lives requires to be moistened before it becomes fit for food. When
instinct teaches a colony of beavers that the water is not of sufficient
depth to escape freezing throughout, they provide against the evil by
making such a dam as has been mentioned, across the stream, or the
outlet of the lake, at a convenient distance from their habitations.
The plan of these dams varies according to the character of the lake or
stream. If the current is but slight, they build the dam almost
straight; but where the water runs at a rapid rate, it is almost always
constructed with a considerable curve, the convex side towards the
stream. Frequently, in such cases, if there is any small island in the
centre, it is taken advantage of, and the dam is built out to it from
either bank. They make use of a variety of materials; employing
driftwood when it can be obtained, to save themselves the trouble of
cutting down trees. This they tow to the spot, and sink it horizontally
with mud and stones. They also employ pieces of green willows, birch,
and poplars, intermixing the whole with mud and gravel, in a manner
which contributes greatly to the strength of the dam. They observe,
however, no order or method in the work, placing their materials as they
can obtain them, except that they make the dam maintain its regular
sweep, and form all parts of equal strength. They carry the mud and
stones in their fore-paws; and in one night will collect as much as
amounts to many thousands of their little loads. When driftwood is not
to be found, they obtain the timber they require from the groves
skirting the lake or pond. To do this, they squat on their hams, and
rapidly gnaw through the stems of trees from six to twelve or fourteen
inches in diameter, with their powerful incisors. Sometimes a tree will
not fall prostrate, the boughs being caught by its neighbours. But the
beaver is not to be disappointed; he sets to work and gnaws away a
little above the first place, thus giving it a fresh start, in order
that the impetus may disengage it from the branches which keep it up.
The tree being cut up, the beavers, uniting, tow the pieces down to the
dam. They then plunge into the water and bring up the mud and small
stones with which to keep it sunk. A long constructed dam, by being
frequently repaired with fresh mud, becomes at length a solid bank,
capable of resisting a heavy rush, either of water or ice; and as the
willow, poplar, and birch generally take root and shoot up, they by
degrees form a regularly planted hedge, which in some places becomes so
tall that birds have been known to build their nests among the branches.
These beaver dams also form bridges, over which two or three men may
pass abreast, and lead their horses, without risk of breaking through.
So rapidly do the members of the industrious community labour, that even
the most serious damage to their dams, or habitations, is quickly
repaired. They always carry the mud and stones in their fore-paws,
pressed against their chins, but they drag the wood with their teeth.
The creature does not employ its broad tail, as was once supposed, to
plaster down its mud-work, nor does it use it as a vehicle for
transporting materials; its sole object being to guide it when in the
water, and as a counterpoise, by moving it in an upward direction, to
the tendency it would otherwise have of sinking head-foremost. The
creatures cover the outside of their houses every autumn with fresh mud
as soon as the frost becomes severe. By this means it freezes as hard
as stone, and prevents their common enemy, the wolverene, disturbing
them during the winter. From the beaver being seen to flap its tail
when moving over its work, but especially when about to plunge into the
water, has arisen the idea that it uses this member as a trowel. This
custom it preserves even when it becomes tame and domesticated,
particularly when suddenly startled.
The beaver, says Captain Hardy, travels a long distance from his house
in search of materials, both for building and food. He mentions having
seen the stumps of some trees which had been felled, at least
three-quarters of a mile from the beaver lodges. Its towing power in
the water, and that of traction on dry land, is astonishing. The
following account shows the coolness and enterprise of the animals,
described by a witness to the fact:--The narrator having constructed a
raft for the purpose of poling round the edge of the lake to get at the
houses of the beaver, which were built in a swampy savannah, otherwise
inaccessible, it had been left in the evening moored at the edge of the
lake, close to the camp, and about a quarter of a mile from the nearest
beaver's house, the poles lying on it. Next morning, on going down to
the raft, the poles were missing; so, cutting fresh ones, he started
with the Indians towards the beaver village. On reaching their abodes,
one of the poles was found deposited on the top of the houses.
In a community of beavers there are frequently some who appear to do no
work, and are called by the Canadian trappers _Les paresseux_, or
Idlers. They live apart from the rest, taking up their abodes in long
tunnels, which they excavate. Several inhabit the same burrow; and
being males, the idea is that they have been conquered in the combats
which take place among the males when seeking their mates, and thus,
like monks of old, have retired from the world,--or perhaps it may be
only for a period, till they have regained sufficient courage and
strength to sally forth, and commence a happier existence with the
partner of their choice. They are far more careless of their safety
than the other beavers, and are thus easily caught by the trappers.
The body of the beaver contains a curious odoriferous substance, called
by the trappers barkstone, but more scientifically "castor," or
"castoreum." It is contained in two little bags about the size of a
hen's egg, and is of a brownish, unctuous consistency. At one time it
was supposed to possess valuable medicinal properties. It is now,
however, chiefly employed by perfumers. The beavers themselves are
strangely attracted by this substance, and when scenting it at a
distance will invariably make their way to it. It is said that the
inhabitants of a particular lodge go forth, and having rid themselves of
their superabundant castoreum at a little distance, return home; when
the beavers of another lodge, scenting the castoreum, proceed to the
same spot, and covering it over with a layer of earth and leaves,
deposit their own castoreum upon the heap. After a time, the former
beavers go through the same process; and this is continued until a mound
of three or four feet in height has been raised. It is difficult to
account for the object of this strange proceeding. It was not, however,
till of late years that the sagacious Indians discovered that the
castoreum was a certain bait for the animals themselves. Formerly, the
bait they employed was a piece of green aspen, beaten up, and placed
near the trap. At length an Indian tried whether a male might not be
caught by adding some of the castoreum. By that time steel traps had
been introduced, instead of the clumsy wooden traps before used. Not
only were the males caught, but the females also; and the trappers were
now able with their steel traps to catch vast numbers of the infatuated
animals. It is said that the creatures, when perceiving the scent, will
sit upright, snuffing about in every direction, and squealing with
excitement. The younger animals, however, are those chiefly caught.
The old ones are often too cunning; and it is affirmed that, instead of
touching the bait, they will cover up the trap with mud and stones till
a mound has been raised, and then, depositing their superabundant
castoreum upon it, take their departure.
We must conclude our account by again quoting Captain Hardy. Of the
infatuation of this animal for castoreum he saw several instances. "A
trap was fastened by its steel chain to a stake, to prevent the beaver,
when caught, taking it away. It slipped, however, and the beaver swam
away with the trap, and it was looked upon as lost. Two nights
afterwards he was again taken in a trap, with the other fast on his
thigh. Another time a beaver, passing over a trap to get the castoreum,
had his hind-leg broken. With his teeth he cut the broken leg off, and
went away. It was supposed that he would not come again; but two nights
afterwards he was found fast in a trap--in each case tempted by the
castoreum. The stake was always licked, or sucked, clean. The
substance seems to act as a soporific, as the creatures, after tasting
it, always remain a day without coming out of their houses. So wary
generally are the beavers, that a trapper is always careful not to leave
his scent on the spot. To avoid this he frequently cuts down a tree,
and walks on its branches towards the edge of the path, afterwards
withdrawing it, and plentifully sprinkling water around."
The Indians and Canadian voyageurs eat the flesh of the beaver,
esteeming it, when roasted with the skin on--the hair having been singed
off--the most dainty of dishes. Early in this century, when beaver fur
was much in demand for the manufacture of hats, upwards of 120,000 skins
were exported from Quebec alone in one year. The warfare long waged
against the unfortunate rodents now goes on with somewhat diminished
activity. A change of fashion--the substitution of silk for beaver--has
probably saved them from utter extermination. The scientific name of
their tribe, _Castor_, was long a popular term for a hat; but now that
their fur has ceased to be employed as formerly, the term itself appears
to have gone out of use.