My wife and I are in Florida and somehow my rants and writings don’t seem as important when it is sunny and warm outdoors! But, I am back! For the next few weeks, I will base my Question of the Week around Beavers. I just finished a very interesting book titled: “Beaverland”. Lots of interesting stuff but perhaps the most stunning revelation is that recent research suggests our national perception of how rivers and streams looked 300 – 400 years ago is very wrong. Moreover, maybe droughts have less to do with global warming and more to do with our wrong-headed river management! But more on that another day. So here is my question: Which of the following statements is least true about a beaver?

1. Beavers must eat their poop to survive.
2. Beavers are the among the smartest of all non-human animals.
3. The beavers can grow to be well over 50 pounds.
4. The largest beaver ever caught in modern times weighed nearly 100 pounds.
5. Beavers will work together as a team to move large trees and rocks.
6. You, dear reader, have almost certainly eaten food that contains processed beaver

Randall Poulton