50 yrs a wildlife biologist and don’t recall ever heard of them. Came across a page about them in my old field guide to tracks. Kind of a porcupine without quills. Any of you NWers ever seen one?

Yes
Lots of them

Easy to live trap

Do they have any fur value? Have not ever heard of them in the fur trade either but they might be a niche market not ever talked about out of NW area. Always surprised at the things discovered even after a lifetime of being curious.

Pikas were a surprise first time in the high Rockies but I had heard of them.

Trapped a scad of them when I was a kid.

No fur value, kinda like an oversized gopher.

Didn’t Bob Gilman write about them?

Yes, that was the critter that got Bob working in the wildlife control bizz. Timber companies lose a lot of recent planted Doug fir to them. Standard contracts are for setting up their burrows with 110’s and pay by the acre.

Another interesting tidbit, the fleas that they get are huge. About the size of a wheat grain. I’ve sold the fleas for entomological collectors for decent money.

Finally, Louis and Clark acquired a mountain beaver cloak from a Comconly, a chief of the Chinooks which they took back east.
Finally #2 Out in Oregon they’re more commonly referred to as “boomers”.

Yep. Thats a new one.

This is a tanned one. They burrow like a ground squirrel. They are an ancient critte. They are the only one in their genesis. No other critter in their family.

Never heard of them.

I've seen them in the woods. Usually in coastal mountains (SE Alaska, WA, OR)

Actually I now realize that we saw one’s den with drying vegetation near in highlands of Kings Canyon NP hiking last summer. Fur looks similar to muskrat. Is it as dense, have as heavy a hide? Looks soft though.

Next time you see one in Alaska take some photos. Apparently their know range only includes some of Canada and there's no known population in Alaska.

The fur is dense but I would say shorter. Leather is thicker than a muskrat. Pretty common for them to have white spots on the belly, sometimes the entire belly. I have one that is all white, not an albino though.
Used to be real common around here. Hardly ever see sign of one now. I still get reports they are common closer to the cascades but on the coast seem to have disappeared. When I was trapping coastal Oregon I noticed the same thing. Mystery why this happened. Most of the timber companies used to hire mountain beaver trappers but they have stopped that at least on the coast.
Just to be clear I don't think their drop in numbers is attributable to trapping them. They have disappeared here even on FS land where there never was MB control.

I have trapped them, and last year spring bear hunting my wife spotted some burrows. She is a great help.

https://youtu.be/Hm4vLe88Ejs?si=SW5gbqEosDavUEkh

Here is a short video of them. I figured you could make a good cat bait out of them for the coastal cats.

wws

Humptulips, was your lighter one like the one in my pic? Normal color is the darker one.

One other tidbit about them. They are only found very close to water as they have to drink often.

Interesting ,never heard of them .

I had one for a pet until it ran away,,,,,,(sad face)
Very calm,,, will eat out of your hand..

They destabilize slopes,,,,,that’s is the problem with them
Timber companies hire contractors to remove them,,,,,,WWS more for you…..