The Biber is a small river in the borderland between

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. The source is located at Watterdingen in the municipality Tengen, district of Constance in Baden-Wuerttemberg. After about the Biber river flows into the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

at the Bibermühle (Biber Mill) west of

Hemishofen Hemishofen is a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. History The Iron Age grave sites at ''Sankert'' indicate that this area has been settled since 800-600 BC. However, Hemishofen is first mentioned after about 1100 as '' ...

in the

Canton of Schaffhausen The canton of Schaffhausen, also canton of Schaffouse (german: Kanton Schaffhausen; rm, Chantun Schaffusa; french: Canton de Schaffhouse; it, Canton Sciaffusa) is the northernmost canton of Switzerland. The principal city and capital of the c ...

. The Biber is the largest tributary of the

High Rhine The High Rhine (german: Hochrhein) is the name used for the part of the Rhine that flows westbound from Lake Constance to Basel. The High Rhine begins at the outflow of the Rhine from the Untersee in Stein am Rhein and turns into the Upper Rhine ...

on the stretch between

Stein am Rhein Stein am Rhein (abbreviated as Stein a. R.) is a historic town and a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. The town's medieval centre retains the ancient street plan. The site of the city wall, and the city gates are preserve ...

and

Schaffhausen Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a list of towns in Switzerland, town with historic roots, a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in northern Switzerland, and the ...

River

On its way to the Rhine, the Biber crosses the Swiss-German border three times. The source of the Biber is near Watterdingen in the municipality Tengen, in the

Hegau The Hegau is an extinct volcanic landscape in southern Germany extending around the industrial city of Singen (Hohentwiel), between Lake Constance in the east, the Rhine River in the south, the Danube River in the north and the Randen—as the so ...

, Germany. Then the Biber flows through the town of

Blumenfeld Blumenfeld is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Alan Blumenfeld, American actor * Amir Blumenfeld, Israeli-American writer and comedian * Anat Blumenfeld, Israeli biochemist * Benjamin Blumenfeld (1884–1947), Russian chess p ...

, where she falls over the Blumenfeld waterfall. After Beuren, the Riedgraben flows in from the left. In Büßlingen, the Körbelbach flows in from the right. After that, it crosses the border into Switzerland, where it flows through the former municipalities of Hofen and Bibern, before flowing through

Thayngen Thayngen () is a village and a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. On 1 January 2009 Altdorf, Bibern, Hofen, Opfertshofen merged into Thayngen.Bietingen and Randegg, where the Dorfbach joins, coming from

Gottmadingen Gottmadingen is a municipality in the district of Konstanz, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, situated on the Swiss border, 5 km southwest of Singen, and 12 km east of Schaffhausen. A first mention of Gottmadingen was in 965. Until the ...

. Then it crosses the border again and the last kilometers flow through the upper part of the

canton of Schaffhausen The canton of Schaffhausen, also canton of Schaffouse (german: Kanton Schaffhausen; rm, Chantun Schaffusa; french: Canton de Schaffhouse; it, Canton Sciaffusa) is the northernmost canton of Switzerland. The principal city and capital of the c ...

, through the municipalities of

Buch Buch (the German word for book or a modification of the German word '' Buche'' for beech) may refer to: People * Buch (surname), a list of people with the surname Buch Geography ;Germany: *Buch am Wald, a town in the district of Ansbach, Bavaria * ...

and Ramsen. It flows into the Rhine at Biber Mill, west of

. file: Biber-Mündung.JPG , The Biber flows into the Rhine file: Bibertal.JPG , View of Biber Valley in the

from the Buchemer Säntis;

Hohentwiel Hohentwiel is an extinct volcano in the Hegau region of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany The mountain is west of the city of Singen and 20 miles (30 km) from Lake Constance. Hohentwiel began forming, along with the chain of vol ...

can be seen on the right file: Rheinmühle.JPG , The Biber Mill at the mouth of the Biber file: Aerial View of Rheinklingen and Bibermühle 15.07.2008 16-41-14.2008 16-41-14.JPG , Rheinklingen and Biber Mill; the Biber can be seen in the top right

Biber correction

The area between

and the mouth of the Biber is flat and mostly use for agriculture. It was frequently flooded by the Biber. To correct this, the canton of Schaffhausen altered the course of the river in several stages between 1902 and 1907. Many of the countless loops of the river were straightened. The old loops were filled with material excavated from the new course of the river.

Beavers

The

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

name ''Biber'' means

beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers ar ...

. Presumably, the river was named after the animal. Beavers were eradicated in the watershed of the Biber over 150 years ago. Around the turn of the millennium, the animals have repopulated the river. They were first spotted in the estuary and the lower reaches. The then moved into the Randegg/Bietinge area. In 2005, beaver tracks were found in Bibern. These animals probably came from the valley of the Thur, crossed the Rhine and gradually followed the Biber upstream.

References

{{Authority control Rivers of Baden-Württemberg Rivers of Switzerland Rivers of the canton of Schaffhausen Geography of Hegau Rivers of Germany International rivers of Europe