The Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) or European beaver is a large rodent with a robust body, short neck and limbs. Its large, flattened, scale-covered tail distinguishes it from the smaller coypu and muskrat. It has webbed feet and large incisor teeth covered in orange enamel. It was once widespread in Eurasia, but was hunted to near-extinction for both its fur and castoreum – the Eurasian population was just 1,200 in 1900. Since then, the population has partially recovered and there have been successful reintroductions to the UK, parts of France, southern Germany and Austria.
