The icons, animals, foods and institutions that make Canada uniquely Canadian.
The beaver is Canada's national animal and an unlikely symbol — chosen because the fur trade built the country. Beavers were so valuable in the 1600s that they were nearly hunted to extinction. Today the beaver appears on the Canadian nickel.
The Canada Goose is one of the most recognizable birds in North America and an unofficial Canadian symbol. They mate for life, migrate in V-formations, and have become so numerous in cities that some consider them a nuisance.