A driver in Northern Alberta, Canada witnessed a rare wildlife encounter between a black bear and a beaver, with the beaver valiantly attacking the bear despite being significantly smaller. The beaver initially held its own, but ultimately the bear overpowered and carried it away for a snack, showcasing the beaver's bravery but lack of strategic thinking.
A little girl is recovering after being attacked and bitten by a rabid beaver while swimming in Lake Lanier in Hall County, Georgia. The girl's father rescued her and killed the beaver, which later tested positive for rabies. State wildlife biologists say beaver attacks are rare in the area, with the last one occurring 13 years ago.
A wild beaver, considered extinct in Wales for 400 years, was discovered by a couple in Pembrokeshire after they noticed damage to their garden. The animal was filmed swimming in a pond, walking around the property, and carrying sticks. Beavers used to be a common sight across Wales but were hunted for their fur and meat. In recent years, beavers have been reintroduced in some areas across Great Britain. The most likely explanation for the wild beaver's presence is that a wildlife enthusiast released the animal. The couple is remaining anonymous to protect the beaver, which they nicknamed "Anthony."
Scientists at University of Texas’s Jackson School Museum of Earth History have named a beaver fossil, discovered in a filing cabinet, Anchitheriomys buceei after Texas-based gas station chain Buc-ee's. The fossil was first discovered in 1941 by a team of Texas A&M University paleontologists, and was forgotten amid the rest of A&M’s vast paleontological collection, including after it was moved to the University of Texas in the 1980s.
A new species of ancient beaver, Anchitheriomys buceei, has been named after Buc-ee's, a Texas-based chain of popular travel centers known for its cartoon beaver mascot. The beaver lived in Texas about 15 million years ago and was about 30% larger than modern beavers. The UT collections include A. buceei fossils from six Texas sites, and most of what researchers know about the new fossil beaver comes from a unique partial skull from Burkeville, Texas. The fossil is a fusion of bone and brain cast that was created when sediment naturally seeped into the beaver's brain cavity eons ago, creating a rock replica of the brain as the specimen fossilized.