Castor fiber Linnaeus 1758

Wilson, Don E. & Reeder, DeeAnn, 2005, Order Rodentia - Family Castoridae, Mammal Species of the World: a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3 rd Edition), Volume 2, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, pp. 842-842 : 842

Castor fiber Linnaeus 1758

Castor fiber Linnaeus 1758 , Syst. Nat., 10th ed., Vol. 1: 58 .

Type Locality: Sweden.

Vernacular Names: Eurasian Beaver.

Synonyms: Castor albicus Matschie 1907 ; Castor albus Kerr 1792 ; Castor balticus Matschie 1907 ; Castor belarusicus Lavrov 1974 ; Castor belorussicus Lavrov 1981 ; Castor bielorussieus Lavrov 1983 ; Castor birulai Serebrennikov 1929 ; Castor flavus Desmarest 1822 ; Castor fulvus Bechstein 1801 ; Castor galliae É. Geoffroy 1803 ; Castor gallicus Fischer 1829 ; Castor introductus Saveljev 1997 ; Castor niger Desmarest 1822 ; Castor orientoeuropaeus Lavrov 1981 ; Castor osteuropaeus Lavrov 1974 ; Castor pohlei Serebrennikov 1929 ; Castor proprius Billberg 1833 ; Castor solitarius Kerr 1792 ; Castor tuvinicus Lavrov 1969 ; Castor variegatus Bechstein 1801 ; Castor varius Desmarest 1822 ; Castor vistulanus Matschie 1907 .

Distribution: Throughout N Eurasia, including Austria, Belarus, Belgium, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Moldova, Mongolia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia (populations throughout), Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine; formerly extinct but reintroduced in many of these countries. See Nolet and Rosell (1998) and Véron (1992 a).

Conservation: U. S. ESA – Endangered as C. fiber birulai ; IUCN – Critically Endangered as C. f. tuvinicus, Vulnerable as C. f. birulai and C. f. pohlei ; otherwise Near Threatened.

Discussion: Reviewed by Heidecke (1986), who recognized eight subspecies, and Véron (1992 b), who recognized six; neither supported Lavrov (1983) in treating C. albicus as a separate species. Subspecific boundaries and resultant synonymies are unclear and further obscured by historical translocations and reintroductions.