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The capacity of the North American beaver (Castor canadensis) to alter hydrological, geomorphological, and ecological aspects of the environment has garnered their reputation as ecosystem engineers. Some of these capabilities may be beneficial to humans, such as impounding surface water in arid lands. Rangeland resource managers have been enticed by beavers� ability to influence surface water and increasingly consider using beaver to build dams or construct artificial dam-like structures to reverse stream degradation and increase late-season flow. Some of these beaver-inspired efforts are implemented as stream restoration projects. Here, I present the range of these practices occurring in western rangelands and discuss what we know and what we presume in terms of hydrological, geomorphological, and ecological effects. Preliminary results suggest that a better scientific understanding of these effects should help inform decisions about the use of beaver and beaver-inspired structures as restoration tools in rangeland streams. However, a complete understanding will likely require further research and better use of monitoring and adaptive management approaches.