February 9, 2025, 8:47 am | Read time: 3 minutes
It’s a story that leaves you amazed. In the Czech Republic, beavers have beaten the authorities to a multi-million euro construction project. The rodents have built a dam exactly where the authorities had wanted to build one for years.
It was an unexpected turn of events: In a nature reserve in the Czech region of Brdy, beavers outpaced the authorities in their own game. On a former military site where soldiers had once created a drainage system, this was supposed to be reversed long ago. New wetlands were to be created there. Yet, due to bureaucracy and pending permits, the project remained in the planning phase for years.
“The beavers accomplished precisely what we had tediously planned through layers of bureaucracy”
However, some beavers that had settled there did not let the bureaucratic hurdles stop them from building a dam exactly where the authorities had been planning their dam for years. The rodents proved to have an unerring instinct, as Bohumil Fiser, head of the nature conservation authority, attests.
“The beavers did exactly what we had planned with painstaking bureaucracy,” the head said happily in an interview with Radio Prague International. “And they did it for free.” But that’s not all: the beavers actually built the dam in the place that the administration had planned, saving the state more than a million euros. The construction would have cost an estimated 1.2 million euros.1
“Beavers always know where it’s right to build a dam”
Jaroslav Obermajer from the nature conservation authority can also confirm the unerring instinct of these smart rodents. “Beavers inherently know the ideal locations to construct their dams.” The expert said that no amount of detailed planning can keep up with the instincts of these animals.
Reports indicate that at least one sizeable beaver family has already made its home at the dam, with sightings of other wildlife as well. With their dam, they have not only created a habitat for themselves but also for numerous frog species and the rare stone crayfish.2
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Explaining the Beaver’s Teeth: Virtually Indestructible
A common question arises: How are beavers able to effortlessly fell and dismantle trees of all sizes with their robust gnawing teeth? There is a thin layer of an iron compound on the incisors that makes the teeth virtually unbreakable. This chemical compound is also the reason for the orange-red color of the incisors.
The gnawing power of a beaver is so great that it can easily fell trees with a circumference of 30 to 40 centimeters in one night. Furthermore, a beaver’s incisors continuously regenerate. So, no matter how many trees the beaver cuts down and chops up, its teeth always remain sharp and ready for action.