Do Beavers Eat Grass? Beavers Types and Their Diet
Beavers are animals from the ‘’Castoridae’’ family with the scientific name Castor canadensis. Beavers are one of the largest semi-aquatic animals from the order Rodentia. These animals are easily recognizable because of their webbed feet, thick fur and their long tail with scales on them.
These animals have numerous interesting facts about them. So in this article, we will be covering our main subject: do Beavers eat grass?
In addition to it we will also put our insights on the types of Beavers on the earth and what role they play in the ecosystem.
So let’s start our comprehensive and very informative guide about these rodent animals.
Do Beavers Eat Grass?
Before getting into the details the two Beavers eat grasses or what type of food they usually eat. We will tell you that weavers are completely herbivore rodents. It means they only eat plants or plant-based materials as their food.
By any chance, if you have a question they eat meat in any form so it is not valid. Beavers are far away from eating meat. Beavers are always consuming food in the form of plant parts. Following is the list of the major plant materials that Beavers like to eat.
Grass
Beavers in the North American regions, as well as a European region, consume grass as their food. The consumption of grass as the food of Beavers becomes very high in summer as well as the arrival of the spring season.
They like to munch on different species of grasses. However, they are not very selective in this regard. Grasses are soft and are relatively very easy to digest. So if someone asks do Beavers eat grass? Then the answer is yes. They are called herbivores and prefer different species of grass is as their food source
Wood
Beavers consume a very sufficient amount of wood every year. If we take into account, then yearly 300 trees are consumed by Beavers in a region. But all these 300 trees are not the food of Beavers.
They also use a very significant amount of wood for making different structures like dams. Dams and lodges are highly advantageous for other animals as well as the area in which they live.
Generally, Beavers prefer the inner bark of trees as their food. They tear the upper hard layer of the bark. And only eat the inner soft portion. First of all, it is very nutritious and they love to munch on this. Secondly, this inner bark is very easily digestible to the beavers.
Crops
Beavers also like to eat different crops. On the top of the list corn crops and maize crops are their favourite ones. In different regions of North America, Beavers made their lodges near the agricultural farms.
This helps them and easily move to their favourite food. Beavers eat stem leaves and fruits of these crops. On the other hand, wild Beavers do not have access to these agricultural farms. So we can say that there is no fondness found for crops in wild Beavers. Many people question, do Beavers eat apples? So many species of Beavers eat apples, berries, and other different fruits.
Aquatic Plants And Algae
Beavers stay in water for most of their time. As they are very active in making lodges and water dams. Beavers do consume different aquatic plants like lilies.
They eat their roots as well as stems. In addition to it, Beavers also like to eat Algae, as it is enriched with nutrients. Moreover, the algae are present in an abundant amount so there is no effort required two find it and eat it.
Twigs and leaves
Beavers just do not consume aquatic plants in her box and glasses. But they also eat plants, twigs and leaves. We can say that twigs and leaves and other soft portions of the plant are their favourite food in spring and summer.
They are fond of eating Alder, Birch, Cottonwood, Willow, and especially the twigs of the Aspen tree. If we talk about leaves as the food source of Beavers.
Absolutely, beavers love to eat leaves of different trees. These provide them with quick nutrition. And leaves also go very easy on their digestive system.
We hope that you have got the answer to your question: do Beavers eat grass?
Surely these are some of the most incredible semi-aquatic rodents found all across the globe. The main reason we are saying this is their key role in developing a good balance between the food chain and the ecosystem.
Types of Beavers in the world
There are two types of Beavers found in three main regions of the world. These semi-aquatic animals are present in North America, Europe, and some regions of Asia.
But they mainly have two categories;
· European beavers
· North American beavers.
European beavers
European Beavers are found in different regions of Europe. Their size is about 73 to 135 centimetres. Interestingly, they weigh around 13 to 35 kilograms.
They have a very healthy appetite and consume a lot of food every day. Generally, they like woody plants and prefer to eat Willow, Birch, Aspen, and Alder trees.
European Beavers have long fur on their body. Zoologists say that they have two layers of fur that protect them to maintain their body temperature in a very suitable manner.
North American Beavers
North American Beavers are very large in size. And the percentage of Beavers is very high in the North American region. Casually, they grow up to 600 to 900 centimetres. Furthermore, their weight goes around about 16 to 30 kilograms.
The North American Beavers are also very furry and consume wood as their main food source. Their strong teeth help them to grind the wood very easily.
These Beavers like to eat aquatic plants and woody stems of different trees. North American Beavers are very huge and they have awesome swimming abilities.
Conclusion
Beavers are awesome animals, with many interesting characteristics. These rodents are very helpful to the environment. Preventing soil erosion, flooding etc.
They completely eat plant-based materials as their food source. And that is the reason they are called the primary herbivores. If you have any questions regarding these furry animals and their diet, feel free to ask, regarding some remarkable facts about these incredulous animals.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1.Do Beavers eat grass in winter?
Beavers of the North American region, as well as the European region, do not eat grass in winter. Due to a layer of snow, there is no availability of grass.
Hence they rely on tree bark as their food source during the whole winter season.
Q2.Do Beavers eat eggs?
Beavers are not carnivores, however, they are fully herbivores in nature. There are no cases seen where Beavers eat eggs of any animal.
So we can surely say that Beavers and all their species do not eat eggs.
Q3. Can Beavers digest grass?
Beavers have a very strong digestive system.They have great potential to digest cellulose material present in grass and other woody parts of the plant.
The microorganisms in their gut help them to break down the complex compounds of cellulose and lignin.
Q4. Where do Beavers live in?
Beavers are very efficient animals in making their houses. They build dams and lodges underwater. The dams and lodges protect them from other predators and harmful animals.
Clearly, Beavers live in large lodges, which they built under ponds, rivers, and lakes.
