Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Beaver Balancing

That amazing beaver tail serves many purposes. When a beaver wants to eat while floating it has to raise it's head a little higher than normal so it doesn't get a mouthful of water with it's food. That tends to sink the middle of the body. To remain floating neutral and balanced, the beaver arches it's back and raises it's tail. An adult like the animal in this photo only needs to raise the tail to the water surface. Smaller beavers will actually raise their tail right out of the water. It's a somewhat comical sight. I'm sure the beavers don't care - floating with no effort while dining is what they are after, and that amazing tail makes it easy to do.

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