An evening encounter with a busy beaver at Mer Bleue Bog, in the east end of Ottawa. While the rest of the family goes for a swim, this one opts to stay hidden in the tall grass. Beavers stay active year-round, using their powerful teeth to harvest wood for food and lodge repairs—even through November’s chill. Mer Bleue, a 7,700-year-old peat bog, is one of North America’s most unique wetlands, home to northern species rarely found this far south and is home to several families of beavers.