Lucas Adcock
Staff Writer
The legal status of protection for the beaver varies from state to state, usually constrained to particular trapping methods, purpose, and very strict bag limits in most areas. The beaver thrived in the United States and Canada for centuries, estimating that nearly 400 million of them lived on the continent. But as colonization took hold in the 16th century, trappers began to hunt them in large quantities for their pelts, making use of their unique fur for various means of fashion – felt hats – which nearly wiped them off the continent.
A beaver’s fur has since been the go-to option for most felt makers, which in-turn, has been the primary material that milliners use to make hats since those early centuries. Now, there are an estimated 10-15 million beaver left on the continent. While this doesn’t sound like many in comparison to the previous numbers, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) now has beavers listed as a “stable population” with least concern. And while their fur is still largely used for felt hats today, it is more common to see beaver fur mixed with others like rabbit, or mink for the really high-end ratings.
Many beaver were later translocated during those earlier centuries, many of them unsuccessfully. This is because farmers took over beaver-occupied land and wanted them gone because of the destruction they’d caused to it. But it wasn’t until after moving them to another location that they began to realize that not all of them stayed in the place that they were relocated to; many of the beavers were dropped in locations that were too degraded, forcing them to relocate. When they don’t already have a deep enough water system, they’re unable to hide from from their many predators, hence the dam-building, which creates deeper water for them.
By building the dams they change both the quality and quantity of available water, which creates a suitable nursery for juvenile fish. What’s not typically discussed, however, is that nearly 80% of all wildlife species depend on the kind of habitat that beaver create in some manner or another, just by the beaver reorientating the natural river streams to create a more controlled habitat.
Not only have we learned to mimic beaver activity in order to help restore some of these barren ecosystems, we’ve proven that low-tech, man-made dams provide the same outcome. And most importantly, is repeatable.
Listed as the second largest rodent in the world, the beaver is a unique animal that holds its place in our ecosystem. So, while they may be a nuisance for farmers who get their property torn up tree by tree, consider plausible options as it relates to their current ecosystem or confident translocation. Despite these animals not being endangered by population count, there’s a reason that the beaver is so well-protected in areas like our beautiful county.
While they’re are mostly nocturnal animals, working at twilight to avoid predators, look for them the next time you pass over that river stream – they may be swimming. They may be busy building. Or they could be resting for the next line of work that they’ve cut out for themselves.
