Staff have managed to catch the animal, which has been identified as a two to three year old male European Beaver.

BBC: Beaver

At the time, hats made of felted beaver fur were much desired by fashionable European gentlemen.

BBC: Qu��bec's wood runners

But the legacy of the Beaver Wars between the indigenous nations, and the bitter rivalries between european settlers for control of the north American continent, were coming to an extraordinary climax.

BBC: Qu��bec's wood runners