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Beaver ponds would not be present in Algonquin Park if it were not for the Beaver. Other than man, the beaver is the only animal in Algonquin Park to dramatically modify its environment in order to meet its needs.
Beaver ponds are created when beavers dam a creek or river in order to create a pond several metres in depth, provinding a safe refuge for eating, sleeping, and raising a family. The dam, a wood and mud structure, slows the flowing water, increasing its temperature and thus lowering the oxygen content. This dam building action has both negative and positive impacts for a variety of plant and animal species. For species such as the Brook Trout dependent upon cold water, this recently changed habitat may be intolerable, killing this species. Yet at the same time, this warmer, more nutrient rich environment is critical to the survival of some species of warm water fishes such as the Pearl Dace.
The creation of a beaver pond provides habitat for common aquatic plants like the Water-shield, Common Bladderwort, White Water-lily and Bullhead Lily. These plants provide shelter for dragonfly and damselfly larvae, whirligig beetles, water striders, and backswimmers. This rich insect life is, in turn a food source for the American Bullfrog, Green Frog, Mink Frog, and birds such as the Eastern Kingbird and Tree Swallow. You might also spot a Black or Wood duck, the long-legged Great Blue Heron, or even a Moose standing belly-deep in a beaver pond.
A beaver's dam and pond will not last forever. When food supplies, like Trembling Aspen, are in short supply around the pond, or if a predator, like a wolf, kills a beaver (or the whole colony), the dam can fall into disrepair. With heavy rains or melting snow in the spring, many Algonquin Park beaver dams break causing the ponds to drain. This draining of the pond should not be seen as a 'bad' thing, but rather as an environmental change with both positive and negative impacts.
For grasses and sedges, the nutrient rich muck once found at the bottom of the beaver's pond is a suitable site to grow and reproduce. Within just one growing season the drained pond turns into a lush green meadow, providing habitat for species like the Meadow Jumping Mouse, most commonly encountered in these 'beaver meadows'. Eventually, the sun-loving Trembling Aspen which initially may have attracted the beaver to this area will regrow, attracting beavers once again to this location.
The beaver has an immense impact on the survival of many plants and animals in Algonquin Park. If it were not for beavers, many of Algonquin's animals would be less numerous that they are today. To learn more about beaver ponds, click on the link below.
Take a 360° tour of an Algonquin beaver pond (Beside Lodge)
Take a 360° tour of beaver lodge in Summer
Take a 360° tour of an beaver pond (on top of lodge)
Educators: Learn more about Algonquin's habitats, download readings and worksheets from the Educator Resources section of the web site, or you may also learn more through the following publications:
Suggested Reading
Educators: Learn more about Algonquin’s habitats, download readings and worksheets from the Educator Resources section of the Web Site, or you may also learn more through the following publications:
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