Beaver sighting wows park-goers in Waterloo
A beaver, spotted swimming across Silver Lake in Waterloo Park, made quite an impression on onlookers Monday.
Matt Morris was on a walk when he saw what he thought was log moving in the lake. He quickly realized it was alive.
“Sure enough, it was a beaver. I watched it swim right from the mill, right up through the centre of Silver Lake here and up underneath the bridge,” he recalled.
Morris said people in the park quickly moved toward the water to get a look at the water-loving rodent.
"What a moment when I saw a beaver swimming. And in the background, the LRT ringing its bell – a beautiful coming together of an urban landscape and nature," he said.
Morris said he saw evidence of a beaver chewing trees upstream last year. But Monday was the first time he saw the animal in the park.
City plans to let beaver be
The City of Waterloo said it’s not unusual for beavers to be in local waterways and city staff try to manage any problems.
“We want to coexist with wildlife as best as possible,” said Jessica Kellerman, manager of storm water operations and construction for the City of Waterloo.
“There are times where dams are built and we need to go in and manage that so that we don't have flooding within the urbanized areas of the city."
Beavers can block pipes and take down trees. But so far, the city said this rodent has not caused any issues in Waterloo Park. If it does cause problems, staff will contact a licensed wildlife regulator.
“It would really only become a concern if there was see dams being built where it would cause flooding or any type of risk or threat to private property structures, other wildlife etc.," Kellerman said.
CTV’s Colton Wiens spent around two hours in the park on Tuesday looking for the creature without success.
If you do catch a glimpse of it, Kellerman has this advice: "Keep your distance because they can be quite aggressive. So don't approach them.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trudeau 'absolutely' best person to lead the Liberals in next election: LeBlanc says
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc insists he's not planning a leadership campaign to head the Liberal party, should current leader and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resign, seemingly quashing rumours he's planning to make a move for his boss' job.
Pastrnak scores winner, Bruins down Leafs 2-1 in overtime in Game 7
Sheldon Keefe told his players hockey history would remember them one way or another.
Bombarded with spam texts? Stats show the problem is getting worse in Canada
In particular, messages that involve phishing — an attack where a scammer tries to trick the recipient into clicking a malicious link, downloading malware or sharing sensitive information — are on the rise.
King Charles III’s openness about cancer has helped him connect with people in year after coronation
King Charles III's decision to be open about his cancer diagnosis has helped the new monarch connect with the people of Britain and strengthened the monarchy in the year since his dazzling coronation at Westminster Abbey.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
A driver dies after crashing into a security barrier around the White House complex, authorities say
A driver died after a vehicle crashed into an outer perimeter gate of the White House complex, and the incident late Saturday was being investigated as a traffic crash, police said. U.S. President Joe Biden was spending the weekend in Delaware, and the Secret Service said there was no threat to the White House.
Warren Buffett says AI may be better for scammers than society. And he's seen how
Warren Buffett cautioned the tens of thousands of shareholders who packed an arena for his annual meeting that artificial intelligence scams could become "the growth industry of all time."
Trudeau acknowledges charges in Nijjar killing, calls for commitment to democracy
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has acknowledged the charges laid Friday in relation to the murder of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.