Found along the rivers, streams, and inland waterways of Canada, the beaver is a large, industrious rodent whose engineering has shaped the country's landscape and history alike. Despite its modest appearance, it is the largest rodent in North America, and both males and females possess strong, continuously growing front teeth together with a broad, flattened tail that assists in swimming and balance. Although the species was once abundant from coast to coast, relentless trapping during the height of the fur trade carried it to the brink of extinction before careful protection permitted its numbers to recover.

The beaver's most remarkable characteristic is its capacity to transform an entire landscape. Using felled branches, mud, and stones, beavers construct dams across streams that can stretch for hundreds of metres. These dams create deep ponds that shelter the lodge, a dome of interwoven branches whose only entrances lie underwater, beyond the reach of predators. The wetlands that accumulate behind these dams filter water, retain moisture through periods of drought, and furnish rich habitat for fish, birds, and amphibians, while even the young, called kits, become capable swimmers within days of birth.