FAQ: When do beavers start breeding and are they around all year?
Beavers are highly territorial and live in family groups, mainly in freshwater lochs and slow flowing rivers and burns. Beavers are crepuscular, rather than nocturnal, meaning they are most active at dawn and dusk throughout the year and do not hibernate.
Beavers can live up to 25 years in captivity, but usually not as long in the wild. Beavers are thought to be monogamous which means they mate for life or until their partner dies. A breeding pair can produce 2-4 kits per year. Mating takes place between Jan-Feb, with kits born within the lodge Apr-Jun (gestation of around 105 days). Other family members may bring vegetation to the lodge for kits to feed on. Kits are usually weaned after 2-3 weeks and emerge from the lodge more regularly to feed with their parents.
Offspring will remain with their parents until they are around 2 years old. Around this period they become sexually mature and leave to find territories and partners of their own.
