A mad beaver is being blamed for delaying traffic in Miramichi, N.B. on Tuesday, in what may be the most Canadian story of the year.
The furry little creature was spotted on Pleasant Drive, where it halted cars and drew stares from onlookers, Miramichi Online reported.
Cabbie Jim O'Neill told the website that he later spotted a beaver chasing a man up his driveway on King George Highway. He had earlier seen a beaver on Pleasant Drive and assumed it was the same one.
He hopped out of his car to snap a few photos but the beaver took an aggressive stance, slapping its tail on the ground and chasing him back into his vehicle.
The beaver may have been displaced from its home due to recent flooding that saw evacuations in areas such as Perth-Andover, CBC News reported.
Miramichi police deal with calls about animals every day but this was a first, Sgt. Ed Arbeau told the network.
"The damn thing was lost, it was going down the street. We didn't do anything, we showed up and seen what it was," he said.
This uniquely Canadian incident set off a torrent of tweets:
This wouldn't be the first time that the animal, which has been declared an official symbol of Canada, has shown pugnacious tendencies.
A beaver actually killed a photographer in Belarus last year. It bit the 60-year-old man with its "razor-sharp" teeth, slicing an artery and causing him to bleed to death.
And in 2012, a rabid beaver hopped out of a pond and chased children at a nature centre in northern Virginia.
Like this article? Follow our Facebook pageOr follow us on TwitterFollow @HuffPostCanada
