The beaver is a valuable component of Massachusetts' fauna. Not long ago the beaver was absent from the state. In fact, it was absent from the late 1700s to the early 1900s. Beavers are semi-aquatic mammals spending approximately 80% of their time in water. They feed on aquatic vegetation and twigs from trees. Their conspicuous lodges and dams are built from trees. As early Massachusetts farmers cleared the land for pasture and crops, beaver habitat disappeared. Habitat recovered in the early 1900s when farming was more lucrative in the fertile Midwestern United States. Our forests continue to provide excellent beaver habitat, and the beaver has been fully restored to the Commonwealth.

This webpage is intended to provide you with biological information about beaver as well as laws and regulations that involve dealing with nuisance beaver and recreational harvest. When the beaver population was fairly small in Massachusetts, MassWildlife concentrated on the a number of beneficial aspects of this large rodent. By damming brooks beavers expand wetlands which provide important filtration for groundwater as well as valuable wildlife habitat. As the beaver population increases and people build residential and commercial developments, adverse impacts from beaver damming activity increases. It is, therefore, critical that people know how to live with beaver in the environment.

In 1996, the voters of Massachusetts passed a ballot referendum known as "Question One". Among other things this law prohibited or restricted (by permit only) a number of types of traps. MassWildlife managed the beaver population by allowing a regulated harvest of beavers by licensed trappers. After Question One was enacted, statewide harvests dropped from 1,136 beaver, in the 1995-1996 season, to 98 in the 1997-1998 season, and the average annual harvest has been 157% below pre-1996 averages.Consequently, the beaver population experienced exponential growth from 24,000 in 1996 to some 70,000 today.

In 2000 the Massachusetts Legislature modified Question One making it easier for people to obtain permits to solve public health or safety problems due to beaver flooding. In this one website you will find all of the materials necessary to guide you through this law and the process for obtaining permits. If you need additional assistance, we encourage you to contact any MassWildlife office.



Posted by: Kelly    Source