Beaver don't tend to return to a tree. If they get spooked off it, they go start on another later..

Looks like that beaver is long gone I’d be moving on from damage that old and not even recognize able you might be chasing a ghost.

Not beaver damage. Ive seen that here in places where there are horss, goats or sheep.

Another vote for porcupines.

Those who thought beaver appear to be correct. 300 yards away from the first damage, I found more. Its chewing every hackberry. My wife named it Earl, because Earl has to die.

Looks to be big too, anytime I see bark ripped upward like that it's usually piggy.

well go get it,

I'm working on that. I don't have traps big enough to work well on beaver (duke 550 & 650), and I really don't want to spend much getting beaver traps because I may never use them again.

I think I'll pick up a dozen snares Scheels. That seems like the best way to go.

What ever that beaver/beavers got into, removing it/them may only be good till spring. Whenther this year or next, or year after, you will get more. Especially if there are more hackberrys, willow , cat tails, lily pads, or combinations of them

Another vote for porcupine from me.

I hear ya, but still:
I've owned the property 4 years and this is the first time we've seen beaver. There is some very old beaver damage (I found 2 chewed trees), and an acre or two of trees in the creek bottom are long dead. The state forester said he thought they were drowned decades ago. Put all that together and I think a beaver dammed up the creek long ago and killed the trees, and mostly (hopefully) have not been around since.

so I'm hoping this does not become an annual event. But I agree it will most likely be a recurring problem.

When I bought it, the property was about 90-95% osage orange with the balance being eastern red cedar (dozens), hackberry (dozens), cottonwood (1 or 2), willow (3-4), and mullbery (5-8). So there are other hackberries but there might not be many close to water. So far it has left the willows alone.

I'm planning on putting a snare at every spot that looks like where it might leave the creek. And I'll make some caster mounds too. Its a small (maybe 1/8th acre) pond then a few hundred yards of creek upstreem of the pond. The creek starts at 4+ feet deep and a few hundred yards upstream is down to a trickle through a thick patch of reeds.

We'll see...

Make a set like this in the pond. They work great. https://trapperman.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/13186/beaver-leaning-stick-snare-set#Post13186

they like cottonwood saplings also

I don’t do pictures. But, go to facebook and look up Billingsley baits and lures. He has several snaring videos that will help you get the beaver(s) that are giving you grief. For the record, his trapping and snaring methods result in live beavers, meaning you have to check the snares everyday. I use his methods and can attest to they’re effectiveness.

I looked around on this site some and elsewhere, then just made it up as a went a long. some of these are probably hopeless, but I put out all 12 snares, so maybe something will work.


I'd welcome your comments on what might work and what likely won't.

I was wondering about disabling the swivel with how I mounted some of them. I saw some saying the swivel is crucial, and I also saw people saying the swiven a tthe end of snare is almost worthless because they'll quickly get around a branch or something and disable the swiven anyway. I'm curious what you all think on that.

I boiled the snares in water & baking soda last night.

I didn't realize until today that pest also took out some willows. I had been trying to avoid roaming around everywhere because of deer season so I was slow to see what all its done. There's floating cat tails too, cut off at the base.

One snare at the pond, that's a straight 5+ foot drop (because I've been digging out the pond)


Creek 1:


Creek 2:


Creek 3:


Creek 4:


Creek 5:


Creek 6:


Creek 7:


Creek 8:


Spring 1:


Spring 2:


Spring 3: