Editor,
I was deeply troubled to read in the Chief that the District of Squamish had hired a trapper to kill beavers along Loggers Lane ("District trapper kills 12 beavers," Oct. 26, The Chief online). Contrary to the trapper's claim that animals caught in conibear trappers are killed "instantly," these traps are terribly inhumane.
Conibear traps consist of two metal frames hinged at the center and powered by two torsion springs to create a scissor-like action. Though the traps are supposed to kill animals swiftly by snapping their spinal column at the base of the neck, the devices kill fewer than 15 per cent of trapped animals quickly.
Many animals die slow, painful deaths as their abdomens, heads, or other body parts are crushed. It can take up to 10 minutes for a beaver to drown in a conibear trap placed underwater. The American Veterinary Medical Association has declared death by drowning to be inhumane.
Non-lethal methods are far more effective for preventing conflicts with beavers. For example, installing proper fencing is a simple, humane solution. Since beavers are not good climbers, erecting a three-to four-foot fence can be a permanent deterrent.
Beavers fell trees for food and for materials to create dams and lodges. They typically only fell trees within 200 feet of the shoreline and usually much closer since they are vulnerable to predators when on land.
Therefore, problems with beavers cutting trees can be solved by wrapping important trees with chicken wire.
Where flooding is an issue, installation of "bafflers" or "levelers" can control the water level without disturbing beavers. Beavers are thought to be stimulated to repair breaches in their dams by the sound, feel, and sight of running water - a logical response as a draining pond can quickly leave them exposed to predators.
Beaver "bafflers" work by dispersing the flow in such a way that the beavers are not stirred to plug them up. Bafflers have many different designs, and can be constructed of plastic or metal pipe, wooden troughs, or metal mesh fencing formed into culverts.
The Beaver Deceiver is another effective device. Deceivers are trapezoid-shaped fences built around points of vulnerability like easily plugged culvert openings.
These fences extend outward to create an area large enough to discourage damming and to keep beavers away from the moving water that triggers dam building.
Developed by Skip Lisle, a wildlife biologist with the Penobscot Nation in Maine, the devise has essentially eliminated conflicts with beavers at nearly 20 culvert sites on the 130,000-acre Penobscot Nation lands.
Beaver-related road maintenance had previously been a major cost as most of the land is forested and supports a large population of beaver. For the past several years, after installation of the deceivers, road maintenance costs in the Penobscot Nation due to beaver conflicts have been virtually non-existent.
Beaver colonies continue to thrive near the devices and to maintain the wetlands and associated ecological benefits at no additional cost.
Aggressive lethal control of beavers ignores the vital ecological role these animals play. Beavers establish and maintain wetlands, which in turn provide critical environmental functions. The beaver's handiwork can have far-reaching positive effects.
Beaver impoundments provide rich habitat for a variety of species, including plants, waterfowl, songbirds, amphibians, fish, insects, and mammals. Dams may also improve water quality by acting as a settling basin, and provide excellent flood control by slowing water movement.
The District of Squamish should abandon its ghoulish program of trapping beavers and instead employ humane, non-lethal measures for managing conflicts with these delightful animals.
Brian Vincent
Squamish
