SALISBURY -- A beaver that has taken up residence in the City Park is there to stay, according to officials.
Public Works Director Teresa Gardner said the city is not considering removing the beaver, as the state Department of Natural Resources has recommended the animal remain in place for now.
It's an elusive creature, as most reports indicate mere evidence of a beaver, such as chewed upon and downed trees. However, some city employees who frequent the park have seen the rodent.
Dale Pusey, acting deputy director of Public Works, said workers first saw the beaver in October, and sightings are now a regular occurrence.
"The beaver just showed up swimming back and forth in the stream, around the vicinity of construction (of the Beaverdam Creek bridge)," Pusey said. "One day, the guys found it in a pipe. We're not quite sure where it actually lives."
A beaver in the park is rare, according to Zoo Director Joel Hamilton, who said the last sighting reported to the zoo was seven or eight years ago.
However, Pete Jayne, associate director for game management with DNR, said his department has received reports throughout the past five years of beavers killed by cars on roads adjacent to the park.
Jayne said the chewed upon trees whose trunks look like sharpened pencils is called "girdling," or the beaver's means of reaching the inner bark, which is its main food source during this time of year.
"When we receive a beaver nuisance complaint, typically it's because they are girdling and dropping trees, or they are damming the water in some manner," he said. "(Damming) would raise the water level and conceivably flood the surrounding area."
Whether a beaver dams a body of water depends on its depth, Jayne said, adding the water in Beaverdam Creek is too deep for damming. Water, he said, is a beaver's means of escape from land predators, such as dogs.
"If the predator comes after them on land, they can retreat to the water," Jayne said. "They build dams to make the water deeper, so it's a better source of safety; but also, the bigger the pond, the more accessible the food resources. They can reach the trees easily."
How long the beaver stays in the park depends on its resources, which at this time are plentiful. Jayne said a beaver can stay in one place for years, moving on when the food is gone.
"There's a very long cycle to a beaver colony. When they can no longer feed safely, they will move on," he said. "Over a decade or two, those trees will regrow and a new beaver can come in and repeat the process. If left undisturbed in that particular area (of the City Park) with its abundance of trees, the beaver will stay there for several years."
Should the beaver be removed, it will be euthanized.
"We are very reluctant to relocate beavers in Maryland because they are so commonplace," Jayne said. "We don't want to move a problem from one place to another."
The beaver has not always been commonplace, according to Hamilton.
"Beavers are an important part of the Delmarva wildlife that were once extirpated and can now be found along its waterways again," he said. "They are an example of success of concerned hunters and conservationists that have helped our regional wildlife to recover from near extinction."
The zoo houses two beavers, a male from the Minnesota Zoo and a female from Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.
Beavers are generally nocturnal animals, Jayne said, but they can be seen in the early morning hours. They are not dangerous to humans but should still be treated with respect, he added.
"People should keep their distance," he said. "Whether it's a squirrel or a beaver, you shouldn't try to touch it or pick it up."
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