Happy International Beaver Day.
"New York State's official mammal, the beaver is unmistakable due to its large body size (26-65 pounds, 25-35 inches) and broad flattened tail (9-10 inches long, 6 inches wide), not to mention the characteristically altered habitat in which it resides."
While Valentine’s Day has come and gone for folks in the Northeast, its safe to say romance, and in this case, gland secretions, still linger in the March air for many of the region’s wildlife populations.
Being in the wildlife control industry, mid-February tends to signal a spike in my phone usage and “windshield time” with calls of pungent odors in the crisp night air and depredation issues on livestock with Tasmanian-devil-like pandemonium. It spells an important milestone time of year for two prominent members of the mammalian super-family Musteloidea - specifically the striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) and the American mink (Neovison vison). Why the sudden spike in activity during this time of year? Breeding season of course!
Well were back out on the line and are still picking up the coyotes! Come along and watch how I skin my coyotes
Nice video of him skinning his 'yote. He had a pretty good season. Of course, don't watch video #11, where he gets kind of skunked potentially for the rest of the season by the ice storm that not only hit New York but also the other side of the lake in Ontario.
The valley that Empire State Plaza crosses is called the Rutten Kill Valley, which is Dutch for “Rat Creek”.
While some people say it refers to urban, common, brown rats that are an invasive species from Europe, “Rat Creek” most likely refers to muskrats, the common furbearer that burrows along the bank of creeks and are commonly trapped and skinned for their pelts in our state.
Our traps have been out for a bit and now it is time to go and see if we caught any beavers!
"Want to catch more beaver? Well keep it simple no need to get fancy. Here is one of my best producing sets made with footholds on a castor mound. Watch as I make the set and you actually witness the beaver work the set and get caught and head down the drowning wire!! Please"