Mountain Beavers are secretive residents of thickets where they excavate extensive tunnels beneath dense vegetation. There are separate chambers for excrement, food storage and nesting. Their vocalizations include a shrill whistle that is only rarely heard. The genus Aplodontia contains the most primitive living rodents anywhere in the world.

The Point Reyes mountain beaver is a unique subspecies that exists almost exclusively within Point Reyes National Seashore. Surveys have been conducted since 1983 to determine the distribution of mountain beaver within the park. These data became particularly valuable after the 1995 Vision Fire burned a significant portion of the habitat for the Point Reyes mountain beaver. Subsequent to the fire, USGS biologists determined that less than 5% of the mountain beaver within the burn area had survived. Ongoing monitoring is documenting the slow recovery.

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