Beavers in Pond...

9973720wb19 · Jun 30, 2021

I have two beavers in my pond that have made a nest under a wooden deck over the edge of the pond with some small branches they seem to have found in and around the pond. So far they have not cause any issues that really bother me BUT I have the following concerns questions:

1. I have red maples that line my driveway about 30 feet from the pond. Those trees are rather mature - about 12-18 inch wide trunks. I would not want the beavers to damage them...?
2. I would not want them to plug up the spring flow coming into the pond.

As I mentioned, they have not cause any of these issues or other issues (yet)...should I be concerned? Should I leave them be or get rid of them?

Appreciate any advise...

sea2summit · Jun 30, 2021

I would get rid of them. They are a rodent and reproduce just like most other rodents, only a lot bigger. They'll go after the easy twigs and sticks until those are gone then go after larger and larger trees. As far as flow they likely wont stop it coming in because the pond is already there, they will start plugging any outflow. They are stimulated by the sound of running water so if you decide you want to keep them you can run a siphon or something similar to drain the pond as needed so there isn't sound to stimulate them to build a damn.

Good luck.

9973720wb19 · Jun 30, 2021

oh good point I didn't think about the "overflow" I have an overflow pipe & Grate system that runs into a large pipe underground into the nearby stream. it would be a big problem if they stop that up

oosik · Jun 30, 2021

I have a ten acre lake on my property. There is a large beaver lodge down at the far end where the water is shallower and the cattails begin. As far as suitable trees for the beavers - non-existent. I did have a very large weeping willow that they girthed and killed.

In my case - the beavers eat the root balls from cattails they pull up. That's just fine - I've got five acres of open water - five acres of shallow water with cattails. The open water part of the lake is 80 feet deep.

I seriously doubt the beavers will block the incoming water. More likely - they may dam the outflow to increase the overall size & depth of the pond. The beavers here have constructed a low dam at the outlet of my lake. It helps control the year round water level. I find the beavers to be very beneficial in my case.

A picture off my front porch. The beaver lodge is way down there where you can see the start of the cattails. It's the tiny black dot in the center of the cattails.

check · Jun 30, 2021

Absolutely get rid of them. I had beavers cut down a couple of smaller poplars that fell on my car hauler trailer and dented the fenders. Then, they girded several big poplars, but not enough to take them down. Fortunately I discovered them before they could finish the job, and surrounded the first couple of feet of each tree with roofing tin valley. If they had finished the job, several large poplars would’ve smashed down onto my boat house.

9973720wb19 · Jun 30, 2021

Beautiful land! thanks for the post.

oosik · Jun 30, 2021

Thanks for your comment. The county assessors seem to like it also.

Its 80 acres and part of an original homestead. Been in my family for 80+ years.

My father purchased it from the original homesteader in 1939.

oosik · Jun 30, 2021

I think you can see by the comments - you must assess your situation and make your own determination. For sure - the beavers will probably go for most any non-evergreen type tree. They will use all their skills to block any type of outlet structure.

In my case - I'm just very fortunate. 100% of all the trees on my property are evergreen - except the one weeping willow. Their dam has been a great benefit and has caused no damage or flooding.

They can be VERY persistent. There is NO WAY to control them. They are either beneficial or can cause serious damage. I enjoy watching them as they putt around the lake on their daily outings.

As far as I can tell - this beaver family move onto the lake some twenty years ago.

nybirdman · Jun 30, 2021

As stated;armor up the trees you want to save or get rid of them.

dmccarty · Jun 30, 2021

Wrap chicken wire around the trees you want to protect.

If the beavers form a dam, install a pond level device, such as this one, http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/assistance/backyard/privatelandhabitat/clemson_beaver_pond_leveler.pdf

Good Luck,
Dan

PILOON · Jun 30, 2021

We have our fair share of beavers on our lake.

Tree protection is relatively simple.
Wrap the bottom 4 ft with hardware mesh or metallic stucco mesh but fairly loose as trees do grow. (I like the stucco mesh as it is cheap)

Next for the dam or pond outlet.
Run a 6" or so pipe under their dam (or yours) with 2/3 being downstream and add a central 'T" then short pipe (2-3') followed by a "T" on both sides of the central "T",
The idea is to camouflaged the output eddy currents that they will try to plug.
It helps if the output array is well downstream as they won't find the 'leak'.

A beaver's food choice is the soft woods, Popular, Aspen Cedar etc but when desperate he'll attack maples and birch.

Good luck!

oosik · Jun 30, 2021

The beavers chewed down a 20 foot tall P. pine. It was on the shore about 150 feet from their lodge. I was VERY PLEASED to see that they didn't eat the bark off this pine. They hauled it up on the lodge and used it as a structural member.

A thought - this coming spring I will throw some of the small pines I thin off the cliff. See if they use them on their lodge. There just aren't any trees for them to use. The closest stands of young pines are a long distance. Up a 40 foot high basaltic lava cliff and across an open field about 200 feet. I'll definitely have to remember and do that.

BoylermanCT · Jun 30, 2021

I get beavers on my pond, and they have never caused any problems. I enjoy getting to watch them. Mine took down smaller trees around the pond which I am fine with as the forest will overcrowd the pond if left to its own. They also cleared a lot of small bushes on the shore for food.

oosik · Jul 1, 2021

I'm glad to see that others can enjoy beavers also. Nice property - BoylermanCT.

Fixastuff · Jul 1, 2021

They made me a sweet fishing hole out of a small creek. The swamp is a little swampier but water stays well below the fields so no worries.

Jstpssng · Jul 1, 2021

Everything has it's place. Years ago when they clogged up a road, the decision was made to move it and let them have the first road.
They then proceeded to plug the culvert in the second...
Last year I had the old 4 foot culvert replaced with a nice concrete bridge with a 12 foot span. This spring the plugged it... I had someone come in, remove the beaver, and unplug the dam. That worked for about 2 weeks until another moved in. Now I'm looking into some type of "Beaver Deceiver" so that we can have our road back.

I went to a class on putting in stream crossings a few years ago. They told us "to avoid beaver problems, don't put your road where they want to build a dam." They may as well have said "Don't put in stream crossings"... The above mentioned dam is behind a 3 acre beaver pond. I still haven't figured out where the water comes from, as there is no major inlet upstream. In another place I saw an old,abandoned series of dams built from a trickle of seasonal runoff. They certainly are industrious little buggers.

oosik · Jul 1, 2021

I can see you are trying to be a good neighbor - Jstpssng. However - there are those times when the ambitions of a beaver family are simply incompatible. It may be best to get the Game Dept to live trap and move them.

Around here - if they are causing damage - the Game Dept is Jonny-on-the-spot to move them to a better location.

the old grind · Jul 1, 2021

If you relocate trapped animals it can take them up to a week to find their way back.

GeneV · Jul 1, 2021

Ok well, we had them in our 1/2 acre pond at the back of our property. Back there borders a creek, and across the creek is an industrial park we very much don't want to see. Anything I would plant back there to block the view of that park soon turned into beaver food. I'm talking about stuff they supposedly don't eat, like green giant arbs. So what I did was, I welded wire fenced the entire property up to where their lodge was, then lit their lodge on fire which got one of them to leave. The other guy refused to leave. So I finished with the fence, trapped him with a conibear 330, and ate him. He was delicious.

rgr33 · Jul 1, 2021

We have had beavers damming up our creek for the last 35 years, it resulted in a nice 2 acre pond in the woods below our house. there is a lot of forage for them to eat in the area, but it also is home to cougars, coyotes, and the occasional bear.

when the saplings get cleared out by the beavers, and it becomes too dangerous to venture that far for new forage, they abandon the pond and move downstream to a safer area. After a few years, they come back to the pond, which has regrown with new trees, and the cycle starts again.
They have never caused any problems, and we don’t bother them.