When do beaver start cutting trees (time of year, not age)? Does it vary by region?

I am seeing some cutting here now. Started a couple of weeks ago. To me it seems a bit early.

Are you particularly dry this year? Just trying to get a general feel of what to look for, and when.

From what I've noticed it veries , some years earlier than others ,and I haven't figured it out yet. Hopefully others know more the me .

Around here it is anytime around September...phone starts ringing. Then later when the harvest starts, dams are discovered and more calls start coming in....then Spring time and.... well you get the idea.

Late October you might see some pencil thick twigs being cut. Serious cuttings don't start around here till we start getting skim ice.

Beaver here get active in September when it starts to rain more.
They move back into the creeks from the lakes if it has been a dry summer,like we had this year.Get more nuisnce calls starting again in September when they start damming culverts at previously trapped out locations..
As far as cutting feed and mudding the house and dam,that starts anywhere from mid to late September to as late as mid October and continues untill freeze up.It varies from year to year.

Beaver cut some trees all year but as the youngsters get totally weaned is starts to increase in small woody cuttings. About 2 weeks AFTER the Autumnal Equinox, look out!. The pituitary gland kicks in with the shortening of daylight and says "get to work on storing the groceries". Here its corn stalks and any wood they can find. You will be able to tell if a litter was raised there by the amount of activity in the new construction around the house - dam - and feed bed. Dry pairs will NOT have anywhere near the work done that a family will. Have beaver cutting phragmites (common reed) and a small finger willow here and there on a beaver job right now ....My Take...... the mike

The Mike, I was out yesterday checking my creeks and... Yep, they have a corn stalk dam going in one of the "hot spots" I trap every year. Like clockwork....

I've always heard that if you see smaller cuttings that it's usually the bigger beaver any truth to that?

If you see nothing but a few smaller cuttings, it is usually a big older beaver. If there are all sizes of cuttings, the smaller cuttings don't tell you anything.

I have always noticed that they start cutting big time when the water goes below 40°. But that may also just be close coincidence to some other factor like light cycle.

Funny thing is our southern beaver will cut and drag it deep for feed beds even though we never ice over and they have fresh feed all winter.

I was thinking that Bossman says his beaver doesn't make caches...I wonder if yours hails from a different part of the country? When do you notice this activity, or is it all year?

Brain damaged from the heat.

Looks like it's started here.

I trapped In SC and NC for 15 years and never saw a feed bed.
Major cutting for feed beds around here starts around the first part of Oct.

What size would this one be…….lol. Big oak made me a few hundred bucks at 1AM this morning.

It's not an every colony thing but I do see it on a regular basis. Usually don't see them starting that until October.

Yukon John
Our beaver all make feed beds