It was only three o’clock in the afternoon, so I was a bit shocked on Thursday when I spotted this North American Beaver (Castor canadensis) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I have only seen beavers at this wildlife refuge a couple of times in the past and it was always near dawn or dusk.
I managed to snap a few photos before the beaver dove into the shallow water, swam through a culvert under the trail, and disappeared into the deeper waters of the bay.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
So sweet.
Great capture of the beautiful beaver, Mike!
Nice catch, Mike
Thanks, Dan.
Wow, very cool. Jealous, I rarely was lucky enough when up north. And a good shot !!
Thanks, Ted. It has been quite some time since my last encounter with a beaver. Now I’m hoping I will see an otter–I have seen them a couple of times at this wildlife refuge a few years ago.
I like the otters because they are more curious than beavers. Beavers don’t last long here, though we do have them (the trail by my house is flooded by one yearly) the otter is much faster.
Oh wow. That is a rare sight!
Thanks, Michelle. I was thrilled to spot the beaver and even more delighted to be able to capture a photo like this one.
What a lovely photo. I have only ever seen wild beaver from a distance. What a great opportunity you had and you certainly made the most of it.
Thanks, Laura. I was shocked that I was that to him when I first spotted him. I have had a few relatively close beaver encounters, but that was years ago at a different wildlife park, where there was a boardwalk that crossed a marshland and beavers would sometimes swim under the boardwalk.
Cool! It’s always fun to see something unusual.
Nice Mike! Usually when I tried to photograph Beavers they swam away & went under the water!