That makes sense. I don’t think the 2 drainages are regularly trapped, maybe John…Mbcoonguy might hit it the odd year cuz I believe he kinda goes in any direction from Winnipeg every year. These spots are regularly flowing so I don’t think many would come from upstream to re dam. But after I got an adult male & female I figured that was it. A week later I went to pull and there’s a huge female breeder in a 330. No maintenance done to the removed dams. That kinda shook my confidence and I started thinking there could be more. Kits for sure. Maybe it kicked out the others and let the 2 adults stay along with the kits? Generally isn’t it the breeding pair, a couple adults and the kits? Probably way too many variables to pin point a number, feed, competition, predators. This is the spot where I saw a wolf right behind a little fawn that came out of the bush 15yds from me too. No action on a cam I had set up either.

Do you thin the otter yourself with a flesher on a beam after the pickle? They’re super thick.

Well, I got everything cleaned up, bags packed and we’re off to the Black Hills tomorrow morning, then the convention in Sioux Falls. Should be good.

Have fun on your holidays Jake.
Overpopulated beaver can move any time if their feed is tapped out,but usually this is after ice out.
In a healthy population the 2 year olds(sometimes one year olds also) leave their home colony.travel and leave scent mounds all along flat banks looking to pair up and establish a territory.A pair of these beaver often set up in marginal locations during the summer,but once september rains start they often move looking for a permanent overwintering area with enough feed to cach to get them thru winter.During very dry summers beaver often abandon a pond and head into the nearest river or lake.In september when the rains come these beaver move back into the creeks and bush run off and prepare for winter.
Newly paired beaver from spring breed under ice in February.and have their litter in early June or late may.
Beaver colonys expand their territory whenever they can,which is why you see beaver move in to a trapped out nuisance spot.Beaver mark their territorial castor mounds after rain to cover up the other beavers scent.if there is nothing to cover they know its open territory and will move in.
Nothing is writtwn in stone however.in places where there is an unlimited supply of feed like cat tail beaver colonys can live close together and share a feed source.
Sometimes I will thin tanned hides on the beam with a spokeshave if there are thick spots in the neck etc.But not too often this is needed.You can do this during the pickle,or even after the skin is finished.
Mostly I thin any hides down by frostscraping either when fresh or after tanning.
The otter |i tan are small ones,I send large otter to Winnipeg with large beaver.
I have tanned large otters and beavers and frostscraped the leather real thin and uniform by frostscraping after tanning.
All you do is wet the tanned skin on the leather side only like you are going to block it,then put it out to freeze.either stretched open or on a forming board if cased.Tanned hides are easy to thin by frostscraping and finish is the same as factory tanned.And no bloom to sand.

Took out two more beaver at these spots last night.The 2 females.One was bred one not.
One more trip out there to break the dams and this contract will be closed.

I guess you break the dam enough to get the water dropping and they come to finish? Around here, if nobody traps them they hire a track hoe to clean it out, a hydro pole is used to jam into the culvert if needed to punch the plug through. On occasion, that gets suction stuck inside the culvert too…lol.

No,I take them right down to natural flow.Same as I did all the years on the RR.
Under the council contracts breaking the dam is by mutual agreement between the complainant and the trapper.
Most will pay the trapper to remove the dam.Trapper can refuse to do that work if he deems it too dangerous,like a small culvert holding back a lot of water(deep) that can only be opened from going in.
I never refuse to open a dam to natural flow.I have refused a couple small culverts like explained above,but only because I work alone.I opened lots of those on the Railroad since I had a helper.
OPG(Hydro) union did not want the trapper to do it-claimed it was their work.Stopped the company from getting the trapper to do it.
It is illegal in Ontario for anyone to break a beaver dam without having the beaver removed first.Exception being an urgent case where public is in danger.
Also illegal under federal law(fisheries and oceans) to let large amounts of water go downstream.Fines are extremely heavy for companies or individuals doing that if they get caught.have to let large amounts of water go a little at a time over an extended period of time according to the fisheries and oceans requirements.

Skinny beaver tail.

You know what they say about a beaver with a long skinny tail eh? Same as a guy with big feet…..good balance.

Since I had the Bonis fired up for repairing and blocking beaver pelts I decided to put together a pair of black wolf mitts with Light Tawney Wolf trim and moosehide palms.
Good way to salvage a couple of damaged pelts from last year.
Should be able to get two more pairs of gauntlets out of those and some pieces for trim on beaver mitts,parka hoods etc.

A work in progress still got to put the fringes on and linings.An hour or so a day for a few days start to finish,not counting the snaring skinning and tanning,lol.

Boco you keep any of those beaver pelts this early in the game?

I dont skin them,just tale the castor and either give to an elder for meat otr take to the line to feed the snimals.