May 2003 -Yep there's a bunch of them along the river & canal between Yardley and Frenchtown. I've seen a few lone ones around for some years, but this year there seems to be a small community of them. The ones living in the vicinity of my home are magnificent animals. They are big, healthy and have gorgeous coats. There are also a few eagles reappearing along the river in our area. I noticed the first last year. One of the rangers told me it was likely an offspring of the breeding pairs up in the Watergap. The river is cleaner and healthier than in more recent times past and apparently capable of supporting more of the original wildlife native to the area. Hooray!! They are much preferred company to some of the nasty residents of the area, whose solution to some of their trees getting consumed is to complain to the Park Service or talk of getting their guns out. You grotesque wretches. Grow up and simply wrap the bases of your more important trees in some wire mesh. You should be given a quarter and told to go into Philadelphia and find a rat to knaw off that festering mutation that lives between your ears.
Got a neighbor calling all the government agencies over a few of their trees being gnawed? Take the time to call the same agencies and let them know there are many of us that view the beavers as welcome neighbors.

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Protecting Trees With Fencing
Individual trees can be spared from beaver gnawing by placing wire cylinders around the base of their trunks. The purpose of this heavy wire cylinder is simply to keep the beaver from getting to the tree. The cylinders can be made from 3 to 4 foot tall galvanized garden fencing (2" x 4" mesh).

 

(Notes: The fencing should extend 2 feet above the highest snow level to prevent winter chewing. It generally does not need to be anchored to the ground. Cut the bottom to fit a sloping ground, or to protect prominent roots from chewing. Leaving a few inches of space between the tree and the wire allows for tree trunk growth. Replace as needed with a larger diameter cylinder to allow for trunk expansion).
Abrasive Tree Paint Protection
Ingredients:
Paint: Exterior Latex (choose a color to match the bark)
Mason Sand (30 mil or 70 mil)
Formula Mix 5 oz sand per quart of paint, or
Mix 20 oz sand per gallon of paint, or
Mix 140 gm sand per liter of paint.
(Notes: Make only in small batches at a time on the day you are going to apply it. Using too much sand will cause the mixture to roll off the tree. Apply paint to bottom three to four feet of tree trunk. For best results, do not paint every tree, leaving some for beaver food. This formula does not work for saplings, so protect them with wire fencing).