466 



Life-histories of Northern Animals 



"Three Beavers [he says ^°] were seen cutting down a 

 large cottonwood tree; when they had made considerable 

 progress, one of them retired to a short distance and took his 

 station in the water, looking steadfastly at the top of the tree. 

 As soon as he perceived the top begin to move towards its fall, 

 he gave notice of the danger to his companions, who were still 







Fig. 136 — A 5-inch aspen just fallen. 



at work gnawing at its base, by slapping his tail upon the 

 surface of the water, and they immediately ran from the tree 

 out of harm's way." 



Many times the tree goes the wrong way. This I have 

 often seen, and frequently it has happened that some Beaver 

 made a miscalculation and was killed by the fall of his own tree. 



The largest trunk I have ever seen cut down by Beavers 

 was 14 inches in diameter, a poplar, but we have records of 

 cottonwoods 20 and 24 inches, 30 inches, ^^ nearly 3 feet.^^ 

 These, however, are exceptional; 3 to 8 inches is the usual run. 

 At one Beaver cutting I counted 116 poplar stumps. There 

 were six such places near the dam, but the largest stump of 

 any was but 8 inches through. 



As an adjunct of work the Beavers sometimes raise a 

 platform of mud around a tree. This enables them to reach 

 up higher to a thinner place and cut it down more easily. 



'" Long's Exped., 1823, Vol. I, p. 464. This passage apparently by T. Say. 

 ** Morgan, Am. Beaver, p. 177. ^' Lewis and Clark, Longman's ed., p. 146. 



