Horned beaver (SciiFii)

The horned beaver (Ceracastor vulgaris) is a species of beaver that originally did not exist, but has since been created by SciiFii and introduced throughout the wetlands, humid forests, and open woodlands across North America to help boost biodiversity. The horned beaver is an average-sized beaver species, with its head-to-body length being around 80–100 centimeters (31–39 inches) with a 25–50 centimeters (9.8–19.7 inches) long tail length, and weighs around 11–30 kg (24–66 lb). Unlike most beavers, the horned beaver, as its name suggests, has a single small horn on its forehead, which is bony and is used by the horned beavers for fighting other horned beavers in inter-species conflicts and for defense against predators. The horned beaver, during its species' creation, may have been inspired by the fictional beavers with horns from the Ice Age film series. The horned beaver's fur is lighter in color than in most amphibious beavers, but is just as thick as the fur of other amphibious beavers to keep it warm in freezing waters. The horned beaver is a keystone species, as it helps to support the ecosystem which it inhabits. It creates wetlands, which provide habitat for many kinds of wetland animals. By coppicing waterside trees and shrubs it facilitates their regrowth as dense shrubs, thus providing cover for birds and other animals. Horned beavers build dams that trap sediment, improve water quality, recharge groundwater tables and increase cover and forage for trout and salmon. Also, abundance and diversity of vespertilionid bats increase, apparently because of gaps created in forests, making it easier for bats to navigate. Horned beavers are herbivorous, eating "water and river bank plants", including tubers, "rootstocks of myrtles, cattails, water lilies", and also trees, including softwood tree bark. Their long appendices and the microorganisms within make possible the digestion of bark cellulose. Their daily food intake is approximately 20% of their body weight. Horned beavers have one litter per year, coming into estrus for only 12 to 24 hours, between late December and May, but peaking in January. Unlike most other rodents, horned beaver pairs are monogamous, staying together for multiple breeding seasons. Gestation averages 107 days and they average three kits per litter with a range of two to six kits. Most horned beavers do not reproduce until they are three years of age, but about 20% of two-year-old females reproduce. The conservation status of the horned beaver is Least Concern due to successful conservation efforts, the horned beaver's wide range and its tolerance to many of the human activities.
Category:Animals
Category:Species
Category:SciiFii