Several months ago I learned of a nearby pond where a family of beavers had taken up residence. I thought this might be a great place to try out my latest homebrewed camera trapping rig that captures video and audio. A property owner graciously allowed me access and I set up my gear at the water's edge.
I thought it might be hard to attract the beavers, so I brought some freshly cut black birch and chokecherry branches, along with some scent lure.
Amazingly enough, it seemed completely unnecessary. I was setting up in the late afternoon, and around 5 pm the beavers came by to investigate me all on their own. There was one beaver who swam very close, about 15 feet away, and just kept swimming circles keeping an eye on me. This was before I even got the scent lure or branches out of my car - all I had set up was the equipment. Then I went back up to the car and when I came down there were 2 beavers. So it wasn't just me they were interested in - they were interested in the gear!
I guess like all engineers they're interested in any gadget they come across. :-)
After I left, it didn't take them long at all to start exploring. This is the very first clip recorded, and it starts about an hour after I left the site.
I've read that beavers forage in pairs, and this video is consistent with that. First two smaller beavers explore, and they clear out (and take the scented branch with them) when a much larger one appears. If you've never heard any beaver vocalizations, you can hear them here as they nibble and at one point chatter to each other.
I've got at least two other clips that I'll be sharing here over the next week or so, so please check back soon.
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