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Watershed Guardians PO Box 634 Pocatello, ID 83204US
Beaver Trapping Regulations Comments Essential!
There's very little time left
There are only 8 days remaining to get your comments to Idaho Fish and Game. The deadline for comments is December 3rd, 2023, but we'd like you to have your comments e-mailed by December 2nd and postmarked by December 1st. Here are the main talking points:
- Beaver activity in the Mink Creek drainage have been steadily decreasing since 2016.
- Beaver activity in the Toponce basin has been decreasing since 2018.
- Current levels of beaver trapping in the Mink and Toponce drainage are un-sustainable.
See all of the talking points Below
Beaver Trapping Talking Points
Furbearer Talking Points and questions
1. Accommodating nuisance trapping in a single drainage (Cottonwood Creek) to the entire region is not reasonable science or game management. This was done during the previous rule setting in 2021.
a. We would like the general trapping season set to Begin on November 30th and End on April 1st for the entire Region V.
2. The beaver activity on the Mink Creek Drainage has been decreasing steadily since 2019 as measured by 12 years of continuous surveying by Watershed Guardians Volunteers. This is not sound management. Even when trapping reports indicate no beaver are reported trapped, beaver numbers continue to decline.
a. We want trapping in this drainage within the USFS boundary to be halted until such time as the beaver lodge density reaches two, in-stream lodges per kilometer (2 kits per click).
3. The beaver activity on Toponce Creek is similarly showing a steady drop in beaver population decline between the USFS boundary to the upper reaches of the South Fork of Mink Creek. This as determined by 5 years of on-the-ground monitoring.
a. We request a 7 year moratorium on beaver trapping from the USFS boundary on the Kelly-Toponce road to the corrals on the South Fork of Toponce Creek just upstream of the corrals.
4. Beaver populations in the drainage appear to be rebounding, but not at a sustainable level.
a. We request that trapping be closed permanently upstream of the corrals on Pebble, near Big Springs campground.
5. Currently, the provisions for nuisance/depredation trapping are not well codified. For example,
a. When is a depredation permit issued?
b. What are the rules that trappers must follow when beaver are trapped outside the regular trapping season? In a closed area?
c.
d. When will depredation trapping data be made available to the public?
e. What dispositions are specified for beaver that are trapped out of the season or on private land?
f. What are the reporting requirements for depredations trapping and how are these reports maintained?
6. Idaho Fish and Game spent millions of dollars on BRAT software to indicate locations where beaver could be relocated.
a. We would like to know how and when this software will be put to use.
7. Idaho Fish and Game completed a §404 permit to allow installing Artificial Dams on the West Fork of Mink Creek with the stipulation that the area would be used for beaver relocation.
a. When will this objective be fulfilled or what is the timeline for this to occur?
8. Many examples of non-lethal mitigation (Pond Levelers and BeaverDeceivers™ have been in use throughout the west for years.
a. How much when will IF&G implement and fund such non-lethal mitigation activities?
Historically, IF&G has worked to improve the options for beaver in the back country and other areas. Going back to the late 40s when IF&G air-dropped beaver in the back-country to restore populations and protect otherwise nuisance beaver. Since then, the support, enthusiasm, since and wildlife responsibility for this animal has steadily fallen off the radar and into the pits of oblivion. What has happened? We look forward to a more responsible, ethical, wholistic and environmentally sound approach to beaver management, up to and including closing streams to beaver trapping BEFORE they are exterminated from a drainage.
Cordially,
Mike Settell
Executive Director,
Watershed Guardians, Inc.
Upcoming Action Needed
Got drought?
(Pocatello). Drought. It's a nasty word if you are a farmer, but it's a worse connotation if you are a consumer of agricutural goods such as produce, diary or livestock. If farmers can't grow food , we don't eat. While it is possible that parts of the country can grow food without irrigation , it is n the arid west where irrigation is the lifeblood of the farm and the foundation of the 1 billion bushels of produce delivered to your supermarket from the west every that worries me. Beavers can help reduce the impact of drought as this article from the LA Times indicates, yet the reticentce to make room in our ecosystem for beavers from Game management agencies is steady, persistent and misdirected. Trapping is a right and in Idaho it's actually imbedded in the State Constituion. What can a a reasonable person do? There are answers:
- Get informed. Did you know that most beavers are trapped because road, ditch or or irrigation conflicts?
- Take action. Furbearer management plans come up for comment every two years and the comment period is only open for 2 weeks. If enough people comment, managment may be willing to change. But you must be ready to submit your comments quickly.
- Support Watershedguardians. We have events and programs that educate the community and others who may have have interest in beavers.
- Get involved local beaver conservation organizations. Together, we can do a lot.
What is the Management Plan
Frequently documents of this type offer a blueprint for future management goals and approaches. Their are no rules or obligations promulgated (enforceable actions). Where Watershed Guardians scope is keeping beaver in Portneuf River watershed, we are not focusing on the trapping of other species such as wolverine, fishers, bobcats or other Threatened or Endangered (T&E) species. That doesn't mean that you can't.
Our Comments
FAQs
How many beaver can one trapper trap in a season?
- There are no limits to the number of beaver a trapper can trap
How long is the trapping season?
- The trapping season starts October 15th and Ends April 15. This season was expanded by two weeks in the last rule revision. You can read the current rules here. UPDATE: Region V in Pocatello has extended the trapping season by 4 Weeks.
What are controlled trap zones?
- Controlled trap zones are creeks that have a limited number of beaver that can be taken. There are 4 such zones in Region 5
Who is responsible for setting the season?
- The seasons, takes, and closures are set by the Fish and Game commission. However, they usually follow the suggestions of the regional supervisor.
How frequently are the rules open to the public for review?
- Unlike fishing and hunting which is every year, trapping regulations are updated every two years.
Are beaver pelts valuable?
- No. A typical beaver pelt may sell for as little as $50. However, one beaver has been shown to provide over $100,000 worth of ecoystem services.
What can I do to help beaver?
- Prepare to comment on the upcoming furbearer rules. Stay informed. Check back on this page and look for our comment recommendations, dates, addresses and means to have your concerns heard.
The best time to reduce trapping on the South Fork was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.
We believe that artificial beaver dams are a poor substitute
Comment on Mink Creek BDAs
Upcoming Comment Period for the South and West Fork Mink BDA proposal.
The Idaho Fish and Game is proposing to construct 50+ Beaver Dam Analogues (BDAs) on the South Fork and 30+ BDAs on the West Fork Mink. We have our oppinion which I will share on this page in the coming days, but in the mean time, I encourage all interested parties to take a look at this scoping document. See our summary and FAQs below
What you can do
Keep abreast of what's happening
Make sure that you are on our mailing list. You mail email your comments here. You can add to this or write your own. Be sure to sign your name at the bottom
Tell your friends.
We will be posting updates on facebook, but in the meantime, if you know someone who is interested in this topic, share the info with them.
FAQs
- Why oppose this action? Aren't man-made dams (analogues) good for beaver?
- Yes, when they are built in streams closed to trapping. The South Fork is open to trapping and populations continue to decline. Until the ongoing declines are addressed, we think that this proposal diverts us from the true cause of beaver activity declines in this basin.
- What about the West Fork of Mink Creek? Isn't that closed to trapping.
- Yes, IDFG has closed the West Fork iin 2018, but there haven't been beaver there since 2017.
- Won't IDFG relocate beaver there?
- As written, the proposal hopes to bring beaver in at some point but relocation does not appear to be a part of this proposal.
- Would WG support BDAs on the West Fork if IDFG had written protocol for relocating beaver there?
- Yes.
- Aren't artificial beaver dams (BDAs) just as good as actual beaver dams?
- They will work for a while. Without routine maintenance, dams will fail and the gains will eventually be lost. Beaver maintain the dams continuously for an indefinite period.
- Who are the authors of this proposal?
- The Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG)
- Why are we sending our comments to the USDA/Forest Service?
- IDFG has the jurisdiction over beaver management, but the dams will be built on Forest Service land. The USDA/Forest Service Westside Ranger Kim Obele has the final word on this project.
- Then why ask for an EA, Environmental Assessment.
- The EA process ensures that all comments and interested parties will be heard and considered. Under categorical exclusion, comments are not considered to the extent that they are in an EA process.
Idaho's chance to end beaver trapping on federal lands
Call to all Flat-tailers, supporters and volunteers
You have the rare opportunity to end beaver trapping on federal lands. This means that you have the unprecedented opportunity, to bring the unusual and amazing capacity of beaver to restore habitat, reduce peak flood damage, boost native fisheries and throttle back greenhouse gas emissions to bear on your public lands.
As many of you know, Watershed Guardians has been monitoring beaver populations in the Portneuf Watershed and requested that Idaho Fish and Game end trapping in specific streams. These requests have fallen on deaf ears leading to the extirpation of beaver in the West Fork, East Fork, Dempsey, and Jackson Creeks and this year's data foretell a bleak future for your local beavers.
As if their inactions weren't hastening the demise of the beaver, IF&G recently expanded the trapping season by one month. The reason? To make it more convenient for trappers to remove nuisance beavers, including those on Federal lands. Attempts to mimic beaver dams have only proved successful in cases where beaver were introduced. They are not a replacement and in some instances, such Man-Made Dams (MMDs) may cause a decrease in beaver activity.
We have met with Water Resources, attended and commented on every trap season, attended and asked for reductions at IF&G commission meetings, and asked state legislators to consider our plea all with insignificant results. This may be your last, best opportunity to achieve the goal of "preserving, maintaining and protecting" not just the Portneuf Watershed "one beaver at a time" , but all of Idaho's and America's watersheds on USFS/BLM lands.
Learn More
We know that beaver can store an incredible amount of surface water and ground water behind their dams. But did you know how quickly this can be accomplished? In two years, the now extant colony on the East Fork made over 21 dams each with the surface water capacity of about 1 Acre-ft. of water. Ther groundwater capcity my be 3-10 times that volume.
About Beaver
Beavers for our future
Time is running out. Let's get them protected before they are gone.
What's happening in our basin?
This data is the result of 1,000s of volunteer hours, miles of on-the-ground sampling and $1,000s donated by people like you. We would not know how our beaver are doing other wise. Please consider donating to help our volunteers carry on their work and our advocacy for beaver.
This is one of those rare chnaces you have to make a real difference in how your watersheds are managed.
When you sign the petition, be sure to state why you think beaver are important to you