{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.beaver","code":"thing-q47542","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q47542/","name":"beaver","alternateNames":["Beavers in Great Britain","Beavers in Switzerland","Beavers in France","invasive beaver"],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.3","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Physical world and living systems","entryKind":"thing","plane":"PHY","domain":["PHY.LIV"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"A large semi-aquatic rodent of the genus Castor, comprising the North American beaver and the Eurasian beaver, known for building dams, lodges and canals with felled trees, creating wetlands that shape ecosystems, hunted historically for fur and castoreum nearly to extinction in Europe, and since reintroduced to countries such as Great Britain, France and Switzerland, while introduced populations in Tierra del Fuego are invasive; beavers are keystone species and their return raises both ecological benefits and land use conflicts.","purpose":"Let an agent describe beavers and their biology, relay ecological roles, reintroduction programmes and management from wildlife sources with attribution, and distinguish the two species and the invasive South American population.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["Dam building","Keystone species","Fur trade history","Reintroduction and conflict"],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"understand","name":"Understand","description":"What beavers are.","layers":[{"id":"biology","name":"Biology","description":"Biology and behaviour.","findings":[{"id":"biology-finding","name":"Biology","description":"Biology.","questions":[{"text":"What are the biology, family life and building behaviour of beavers?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Is the animal a beaver, a muskrat, a nutria or an otter?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"species","name":"Species","description":"Species and populations.","findings":[{"id":"species-finding","name":"Species","description":"Species.","questions":[{"text":"How do the North American and Eurasian beavers differ, and where do populations live?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which entry fits the specific species or population?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"ecology","name":"Ecology","description":"Ecosystem engineering.","layers":[{"id":"engineering","name":"Engineering","description":"Dams and wetlands.","findings":[{"id":"engineering-finding","name":"Engineering","description":"Engineering.","questions":[{"text":"How do beaver dams shape hydrology, biodiversity and flood resilience, as research shows?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which sources are cited?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"reintroduction","name":"Reintroduction","description":"Reintroduction.","findings":[{"id":"reintroduction-finding","name":"Reintroduction","description":"Reintroduction.","questions":[{"text":"How have reintroductions in Britain, France, Switzerland and elsewhere proceeded, and what debates exist, with positions attributed?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the presentation neutral?","kind":"boundary"}]}]}]},{"id":"manage","name":"Manage","description":"Management and conflict.","layers":[{"id":"management","name":"Management","description":"Management.","findings":[{"id":"management-finding","name":"Management","description":"Management.","questions":[{"text":"How are beaver conflicts managed with flow devices, translocation and licensing?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the user asking about a specific site, which needs local wildlife authorities?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"invasive","name":"Invasive","description":"Invasive populations.","findings":[{"id":"invasive-finding","name":"Invasive","description":"Invasive.","questions":[{"text":"What impact do introduced beavers have in Tierra del Fuego, and what control exists?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which references are standard?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]},{"id":"context","name":"Context","description":"History and culture.","layers":[{"id":"history","name":"History","description":"Fur trade and decline.","findings":[{"id":"history-finding","name":"History","description":"History.","questions":[{"text":"How did the fur trade and castoreum hunting shape beaver history, as historians describe?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits the North American fur trade?","kind":"action"}]}]},{"id":"culture","name":"Culture","description":"Culture.","findings":[{"id":"culture-finding","name":"Culture","description":"Culture.","questions":[{"text":"How do beavers feature in Indigenous traditions, national symbols and popular culture?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits beaver in culture?","kind":"action"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Record and report beaver sightings, dams and flooding to wildlife or land authorities.","Monitor beaver dams on land the agent is authorized to manage."],"mustNot":["Destroy dams or lodges without lawful authority, especially where beavers are protected.","Trap, kill or move beavers except under licence.","Disturb lodges during breeding season."],"requiresHuman":["Any removal of a dam, relocation or culling of beavers.","Deciding on flood management that affects beaver habitat."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Beavers restore wetlands but also flood farmland; conflicts need fair handling.","Beavers were hunted near to extinction in Europe and are protected in many places."],"affectedParties":["The beavers themselves","Landowners and farmers","Wetland wildlife"]},"owners":{"steward":"Nobody: wild and protected by law in many countries.","roles":[],"masterSystems":["Species and habitat monitoring databases"]},"relations":[{"target":"Q59099","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"herbivore","type":"related","note":"in registry terms"},{"target":"rodent","type":"related","note":"in taxonomic terms"},{"target":"beaver dam","type":"related","note":"creating wetlands"},{"target":"keystone species","type":"parent","note":"in ecology"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.beaver","Wikidata: Q47542 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q47542)","taxon: Castor Linnaeus, 1758","IUCN: Least Concern both species"]},"properties":{"applicability":"required","items":["adult weight: about 15-30 kg","Eurasian beaver population: over 1 million count - recovered from about 1200 in 1900"]},"recognition":{"applicability":"required","items":["Dam-building semi-aquatic rodent","North American and Eurasian beavers, reintroduced and invasive populations","Muskrats and nutria are smaller with different tails; otters are carnivores","A large brown rodent with a flat scaly tail, webbed hind feet and orange incisors."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["describe biology and behaviour","relay ecological roles","relay reintroduction and management","distinguish species and populations"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Flooding of farmland and infrastructure","Conflict over reintroduction, with positions attributed","Invasive impacts in Tierra del Fuego","Confusing with other aquatic rodents"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["Protected species status in many European countries","Licensing of beaver releases and management","Invasive species control programmes in South America","Fur trapping regulations"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["Not applicable; a genus of animals.","North American beaver, Castor canadensis","Eurasian beaver, Castor fiber","reintroduced beavers in Great Britain, France, Switzerland and elsewhere","invasive beavers in Tierra del Fuego","beaver-engineered wetlands"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q47542: beaver","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q47542","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Beaver","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should the two species be separate primary entries?","How should reintroduction sources be linked?","The registry entry has merged aliases naming national populations; should they be split off?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q47542/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q47542/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-13T02:25:37Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"filled","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-06T19:52:00+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass"},"score":1.0}}