Lots to be thankful for this morning. Check out the [almost] entirely sound letter to the editor in New Mexico by Tom Fisher n the Rio Grande News. I guess there aren’t too many beaver fans in the state because this praise reads like fairly weak tea. But since Tom works for the paper I think we have to count this in the plus column.
Beaver Management Has Worked
The half page ad “Bothered by Beavers” in the Aug. 12 edition ignores the fact that the current management of beavers is and has worked well. Having spent the better part of my life studying, observing, trapping and using beavers I can speak from first-hand experience.
The “control” devices I have seen installed work—sometimes. As far as “painting” trees to protect them from beavers I haven’t observed that but I have seen fencing used with some limited success initially but it needs maintenance and in deep snow are ineffective.
Beavers are dynamic, ever changing and in the world we live in need lethal management along with protection. An under harvested population will degrade its habitat and cause more conflicts with people. I remove beavers every year from irrigation ditches, road culverts and private land. If left in irrigation ditches, they will compromise the ditch with their digging dens/refuge holes and plugging the headgates.
A beaver pond is a wonderful, dynamic place full of a diverse mix of wildlife. We have these wonderful animals in abundance thanks to a sound management plan put into place by the NM Dept. of Game and Fish.
Management needs more than a simplistic “one size fits all” approach.
Tom Fisher
Worked sometimes? Umm hasn’t trapping “Worked sometimes?”. Don’t new beavers always come back so doesn’t that mean trapping failed?
If a flow decide is properly installed by a competent person, It works. Ours did. For ten years in a flashy urban stream. Where businesses and city functions were at stake. Ours worked. Yours should too.
But don’t worry. The only parts of New Mexico that need beavers are the parts that need water.
