BEAVERS! Beavers provide numerous ecosystem services and play a key role in making Oregon's lands more resilient to our changing climate

Did you know that there were once hundreds of thousands of beavers in Oregon, the Beaver State, and the beaver is featured on the Oregon flag?

And that these beavers and the pond and wetland systems they create once supported the returns of millions of salmon and steelhead to our rivers and streams?

This Oregon we love was once filled with beaver dams that created the deep ponds that beavers use to protect themselves from bears and cougars.

MAKING A DAM IS A FAMILY AFFAIR

Beaver dams are created by colonies of beavers-- with the young being taught how to help make and maintain their well-engineered dams. It takes an “all paws” approach!

BEAVERS CREATE PONDS CONSIDERED “ESSENTIAL HABITAT” FOR OREGON'S SALMON...

Vulnerable young coho salmon hang out in beaver ponds to escape high stream flows, protecting them from getting washed downstream. They also find rich food here, growing bigger and faster, which increases their chance of survival.

Currently, state rules don’t assure that there are enough beaver to build and maintain the dams the young salmon need.

Without beavers, streams can dry out in the summer or run too fast in the winter - and that can impact fish survival.

BEAVERS HELP ALL WILDLIFE...

By creating deep water areas and canals, beavers create wetlands that benefit a wide array of wildlife.

BEAVERS PROVIDE PROTECTION FROM DROUGHTS

Even during droughts, beaver ponds and their wetlands store water and help the land resist wildfires.

Areas influenced by beavers create firebreaks and wildlife and livestock safe zones, as well as restore habitat more quickly after a fire.

BUT BEAVERS ARE NOT VALUED

People can trap and kill an unlimited numbers of beavers on public lands during the hunting and trapping season which overlaps with the beavers’ breeding and pupping season.

The traps even kill pregnant females and young, making it difficult for the population to rebuild.

We don’t even know which streams are being trapped! Until 2022, no location reporting was required at all on private lands and only by county on public lands.

On private lands, outside the November-March official trapping season, it’s still a kill anywhere, anytime situation, with no records kept.

YOU CAN HELP BEAVERS!

Beavers need your help to thrive and make beaver dams that will help our fish and wildlife.

Let others know that Beavers can help people too, especially with our changing climate...

Beavers can help Oregon to better deal with climate change.

JOIN EFFORTS TO CLOSE BEAVER TRAPPING ON PUBLIC LANDS

What can you do?

Tell your legislators and public land managers that:

You value beavers for their fish, wildlife and habitat benefits.
You want populations to grow so that land managers can use beaver as a part of their restoration efforts and as a climate resilience tool.•
You want your public land managers to work with ODFW to propose beaver trapping closures in July 2024.

WITH YOUR HELP WE CAN BEGIN RESTORING THIS ICONIC SYMBOL OF OREGON AND ALL THE BENEFITS THEY PROVIDE!

For more information, contact:

Fran Recht, Habitat Program Manager • Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission 503-595-3100

The Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSMFC) Habitat Program is involved in programs on the West Coast that further habitat protection for anadromous, estuarine, and marine fish species. Program efforts are focused on watershed and estuarine conservation and restoration, work with regional science and policy bodies and marine debris and pollution abatement.

Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission

Fran Recht is the Habitat Program Manager for the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission. In her position she acts to conserve and restore freshwater, estuarine and ocean habitats. She works by advancing policies and actions through work with collaborative, multiparty groups such as the Pacific Fishery Management Council, the Pacific Marine and Estuarine Fish Habitat Partnership, forest service stewardship groups, and local watershed councils.

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Appreciate