It's beaver season!

The calls are rolling in! All summer people have walked around their ponds and lakes and have been amazed how the beavers have "disappeared". Now that it is fall, they seem to have appeared from nowhere! Dams are showing up flooding yards and fields, trees are being cut down. Where did all these beavers suddenly come from? 

The truth is.... they have been there all along. 
In the summer, the beavers live pretty light on the land. When there isn't much rainfall (like this past summer) there isn't any water running, so there is no point in building dams. In the spring and summer, the beavers live off of pond weeds, cattails, and lilypads. They seldom cut trees of any size until the fall when they are ready to start storing food for winter. 
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​A winter cache

​In the ;ate summer and early fall, the beavers switch to eating trees. Actually, that isn't exactly true. Beavers do cut down trees, but they only eat the cambium layer. That is the layer between the rough outer bark and sapwood. This is where all the sugary sap is stored.  

The beavers fell the trees, and trim the branches down to a size they can handle. The branches are then shoved into the mud in front of the den entrance where they will be accessible all winter, even under the ice. The pile of sticks and branches can be huge and easily seen from the shore. 
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Of course, it takes a lot of trees to get a beaver colony through the winter. 
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This tree damage is often the first and and most noticeable sign that there is a beaver problem. 

​urban beaver trapping

Beavers love HOA ponds, golf course water traps, and ornamental water features, and they can do a LOT of damage in just a few nights. Trapping beavers in neighborhoods and urban settings in close proximity to children and pets poses a special challenge. Predator Impact will only use live catch traps anywhere there is a risk of encountering kids or pets. 

One of our favorite live catch traps for beavers is the Koro. 
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Traps for beavers are always set in the water, but we set them in such a manner that a dog or other pet can be easily released unharmed in the unlikely circumstance that one is caught by accident. 
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There are several different styles of traps we use depending on the situation and the location. 
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Regardless of the style of trap. they are all designed to capture the beavers alive and unharmed. 
Under special circumstances, or in rural settings, there are other traps we can use that are less kid and pet friendly. 

​Relocation

It is rare that anyone in Oklahoma wants more beavers, and given that they can travel as much as 50 miles once released, the Oklahoma Dept of Wildlife has decreed that there will be no beavers relocated within Oklahoma. Unfortunately, beavers are one of the few exceptions to Predator Impact's "No-Kill" policy. While almost all are euthanized, it is done humanely and the animal is fully utilized. The glands are harvested for use in making beaver lure; the meat is excellent table fare; and the pelts and tails are donated to the local Native craftsmen for use in making traditional items. Nothing goes to waste! 

GOT A BEAVER PROBLEM?

Contact Predator Impact, LLC at (918) 397-4091. We will be happy to come to your site and discuss the situation and options for dealing with the issue. There is never any cost or obligation for consultation!