THE BEAVER POND, No. 29.
Hidden away in the deep valley between high hills of virgin forest lies the Beaver Pond. The spot is so secluded, so silent and primeval, that it seems like the heart of the Adirondack wilderness. Lying fairly in the lap of the granite hills is a three-acre oval of level swamp, which recently was full of woodland rubbish and choked by rank weeds. The seclusion of the spot, the splendid forest, the food-wood and the possibilities of the dam, all naturally suggested the beaver.
In order that the building of a dam by the beavers would not raise the water level so high as to flood the roots of a number of fine forest trees and destroy them, two feet of soil was taken out of the swamp, and at the same time a broad outlet was excavated. A fence of small iron bars, with an overhang, was designed to encircle an area of about three acres. Within the enclosure thus made, stand several large forest trees—chiefly oak, sweet gum, and maple—which have been protected by guards of wire and corrugated iron. The small maples, however, have been given over to the beavers, to cut down and use as food-wood and also in their dam-building operations.
The Beaver Colony in our pond is in good working order, and its display of work makes a highly satisfactory exhibit. The dam, about 40 feet long and 4 feet high, was built of poles and sticks which were cut, peeled, floated down and placed by the beavers, and pointed up with mud. There is a house 10 feet in diameter and 4 feet high, similarly constructed. Within the enclosure about twenty saplings and trees have been cut down by the beavers and used up for food and building materials.
For this colony the Society is indebted to Mr. Hugh J. Chisholm, who procured for it two specimens from Canada and three from Maine.
The American Beaver, (Castor canadensis), is a remarkable animal. In original thought it is equalled by few animals, and in industry by none. With the possible exception of the porcupine, it is the largest gnawing animal in North America, once was widely distributed, and its beautiful fur has been in demand ever since the days of the colonists. Unfortunately, the Beaver’s intelligence was directed chiefly to the building of dams, canals, and houses, and procuring an abundant supply of food-wood, rather than in providing itself with means of escape from its arch enemy—the man with a steel trap. Because of the constant demand for its fur, this animal has been so nearly exterminated throughout the United States that practically none remains save where they are rigidly protected. At present the largest colonies known are those in the Yellowstone Park, although in Canada and the Northwest many still remain.
The most wonderful thing about the Beaver is the manner in which he builds dams, to make ponds deep enough for his timber-floating operations, and to afford him a submarine passage to his house. Give him a valley and a stream of water, and he will gladly make a pond out of whatever raw materials are at hand. He uses the four-foot sticks from which he has eaten the bark for food, and with these, and an abundance of mud, he will raise a good strong dam to a height of four feet, and a width on the ground of ten feet or more. The mud used is dug out of the bottom and sides of his pond, and carried, while swimming, between his paws, with his front feet holding it against his breast. The sticks used in the dam are thrust endwise into the mud on top of the dam, and the mud used is patted down with his fore feet. The tail is not used as a trowel, but in swimming it is the Beaver’s propeller.
In captivity the Beaver is not wholly a satisfactory animal. Like some human craftsmen, he positively declines to work under observation, and performs nearly all his tasks at night. He thinks nothing of gnawing down a tree a foot in diameter, and cutting its limbs into pieces which he can handle while swimming. If he can secure enough food-wood of kinds of his liking, he eats little else. Besides building dams to create ponds in which he can take refuge when hard pressed, he constructs canals, and houses for winter use. He also digs burrows into high banks; but his entrances to his various homes always are under water.