Sierra Nevad Mountain Beaver
The Shy Underground Builder
What is it?
Sierra Nevad Mountain Beaver
The Shy Underground Builder
What is it?

What Is It?

The Sierra Nevada mountain beaver is a chubby little rodent that digs tunnels and lives in the cool, wet parts of California’s mountain forests. Fun fact: it’s not even a real beaver! But it’s been around since the time of the dinosaurs

Where Does It Live?

In foggy, moist forests with soft ground. These little guys are homebodies—they don’t move around much, so they really need their patch of forest to stay safe.

What Does It Do?

It digs burrows, eats leaves and roots, and stays hidden most of the time. It doesn’t swim or build dams—it just wants some peace, mud, and veggies.

What’s the Problem?

These beavers are having a rough time. Here’s why:

Trees getting cut down
destroy its hiding spots.

Drier weather
from climate change messes up its habitat.

It can’t travel far,
so if its home is ruined, it’s got nowhere to go.

What’s Being Done to Help?

    Why Should We Care?

    Mountain beavers are like nature’s gardeners—they dig up soil and help spread seeds, which helps forests grow. If they disappear, the forest can start to fall out of balance. Plus, they’ve survived for millions of years—we shouldn’t be the ones to wipe them out!

    Meet Other SPECIES

    The Southern Long-toed Salamander (Ambystoma macrodactylum sigillatum) is a subspecies of the long-toed salamander, found primarily in the southern Sierra...
    The smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) is a popular freshwater game fish native to North America, particularly found in lakes, rivers,...
    The mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which...
    The mountain chipmunk (Neotamias amoenus), also known as the yellow-pine chipmunk, is a small, agile rodent native to mountainous regions...

    help protect gateway park species