"We had been lying in wait for two hours without seeing any movement in the water, and suddenly there were a lot of waves and splashing. Then it took another half an hour before the beaver appeared under a bridge. When it came close enough, it accidentally stopped below us, and then I took a well-positioned shot and killed it instantly," a proud Mats Thorsvik told the Norwegian newspaper Verdens Gang.
When the animal was dragged ashore with the help of sticks and weighed, it clocked an amazing 34 kilograms.
"It was a beast of a beaver that came out of water. I could not imagine it was so big before we got it on land," Mats Thorsvik said. "When I first saw it, I thought it was about 20 kilos, so I was amazed at how heavy it was. I have never heard of such heavy beavers."
However, Thorsvik's agitation after the "beaver fever" abated when he learned that the Norwegian Association of Hunters and Anglers (NJFF) only registered beavers' craniums and not weight. In this case, the cranium was damaged by the shot.
Eurasian beavers are one of the largest living species of rodents and are the largest rodent native to Eurasia. They typically reach a weight of 18 kilograms.
Norway is believed to have a beaver population of 70,000. The Norwegian beaver management which dates back to the mid-1800s, is often seen as a beacon, allowing for greater biodiversity, producing a harvestable surplus, and reducing beaver-human conflict.
ECO-SAVIOURS? Find out how beavers can help us with world-wide water shortage. #tnot tonight http://t.co/U33xE2xWFb pic.twitter.com/tMeA4sxGhh
— Beaver Whisperers (@CastorCamCBC) June 4, 2015
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