In this paper, based on the results of a field survey using GNSS equipment, some morphometric characteristics of beaver (Castor fiber L.) dams (length, height and their ratio) and ponds (length) in ten small rivers of the Volga-Kama region are determined. Analysis of the beaver dams showed a statistically significant increase in their heights as the slopes of river channels increase. The critical value of the channel slope at which a statistically significant change in the heights of beaver dams occurs is 1.45 %. The greatest average heights of beaver dams are confined to rivers, the basins of which are composed of predominantly loamy sediments on their surfaces, especially in those cases where the soils formed on them are poorly plowed. A statistically significant decrease in the length of beaver dams and their associated ponds with increasing river slopes was also revealed. The critical value of the channel slope at which a statistically significant change in the lengths of beaver dams occurs ranges from 0.54 to 1.07 %, depending on the selected test. For pond lengths, this value ranges from 0.47 to 0.65 %. Intraregional changes in the morphometry of these beaver constructions are considered. The features noted above reflect the early stage of settlement of Castor fiber L. in the rivers under study.

Gusarov Artyom Viktorovich, Candidate of Sciences (Geography), Associate Professor, Senior Research Scientist, Scientific Research Center “Digital Earth”, Institute of Geology and Petroleum Technologies, Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University, 18, Kremlyovskaya st., Kazan, 420008, Russian Federation, e-mail: avgusarov@mail.ru

Sharifullin Aidar Gamisovich, Candidate of Sciences (Geography), Associate Professor of the Department of Landscape Ecology, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University, 18, Kremlyovskaya st., Kazan, 420008, Russian Federation, e-mail: AGSharifullin@kpfu.ru

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