New research suggests that wetlands created by the industrious rodents are carbon sinks, meaning they store a lot of heat-trapping carbon dioxide—the human-produced gas largely responsible for today’s global warming April 24, 2026 10:36 a.m. The researchers studied a wetland shaped by Eurasian beavers in Switzerland. Patrick Pleul / picture alliance via Getty Images The industrious beaver—often dismissed as a pest—might be a powerful ally in the fight against climate change. A study published March 18 in the journal  Communications Earth and Environment  found that the large rodents can help transform stream corridors into carbon sinks, meaning they store more carbon dioxide than they emit. Carbon dioxide is the heat-trapping greenhouse gas responsible for most human-caused warming.…