A proposed ban on regulated beaver trapping in (of all places) “the beaver state” has pitted wildlife officials against animal activists, and science against social discourse. Beavers have long been associated with the early history of Oregon’s settlement, bringing commerce and trade to the region during settlement, and their pelts today still hold value to a determined sector of the state’s citizenry.
Predator eat predator: New findings give insight into a varied wolf diet
When thinking about the parameters of a typical wolf diet, a common conjuring of likely candidates resembles common prey species such as wild ungulates and ranched livestock. However, as the Voyageurs Wolf Project of Minnesota highlights in a recent social media post, skilled predators like wolves can sometimes leave us all surprised with what they fancy for a meal.
Beaver attack in Virginia river rehashes talk of “Zombie Beavers”
The Virginia incident is the latest in an over decade-long string of rabid beaver attacks. Being a density-dependent disease, does the influx in beaver/rabies cases highlight a species that is reaching or exceeded natural carrying capacity? Are rabid beavers becoming more prevalent or are we just becoming more aware of rabid beavers?
Idaho's air-dropped beavers, muskrat pens and ear-tagged marten
In 1948, game warden and pilot Elmo Heter executed a plan years in the making to reintroduce beavers into the mountainous wilds of Idaho. The project gained international fame in 2015, when a local historian discovered lost footage of the program. As seen in the video, the reintroduction efforts didn’t stop at parachuting beavers.