Science of Trapping

nce abundant. Today they are found in fair numbers throughout the greater part of Canada and Alaska, also in a few of the northern and western states. There are also a few beavers found in the sout

d by a web; the front feet are small. The tail is "paddle shaped," four or five inches wide and about ten inches long. When full grown, the beaver will weigh from forty to fifty pounds, although occasionally a mu

ods as poplar, birch, willow and cottonwood, as well as th

of a pond or lake, but often making a large pond to suit their requirements, by building a dam across the stream. Even when t

wo small dams found below the main dam, and they are so well made that they will la

se depends on the number of beavers inhabiting it. The house of a full family of beavers will usually measure about twelve feet in diameter at the water line, but will

nts, and as it requires several years for them to grow their full size, there are always three sizes in a family. When they have reached the age of two years, they start out and make a house of their own, the beavers

, which they gnaw off about a foot above the ground, drag into the edge of the water, where they are cut up into pieces of different lengths, stored away, under water in front of the house. Just how they cause this wood to sink, remain in place under the water, is a mystery. The beaver spends the entire winter under the ic

n old deserted house, and then it is not such an easy matter. The experienced trapper, however, is not likely to be fooled. He goes along the shore and carefully examines the stumps, where the animals have been cutting trees for food. The amount of stuff that has been

l, I went there one rainy day and set two traps. I set the traps very carefully, fastening to sliding poles, which I had cut quite a distance away so as not to make any noise near the house. The rain washed the scent away in a short time, and I could see no reason why he should take alarm; but he did, just the same. I kept th

the direction in which he wishes it to fall, but lets it fall just as it is inclined to go. I have seen where a tree had lodged, refusing to fall, and the beav

ll, as by leaving a few to breed, he is sure of getting beavers each season. The Indians, in such cases, trap the old beav

ot prime until mid-winter. In the north they remain in good condition until the fi

ep the castors for scent, as it is attractive to many animals. The Indians sometimes combine the two scents by making a hole in the beaver castors, and squeezing the contents of th

/2, 3, 3 1/2 and 4 Newhouse, the No. 4 Vict

r Beaver--S

n open water, in either the fall or spring. The

e of beaver castor and fasten it to the bank with a stick, about fourteen inches above the water, and as far back in the pocket as possible. If you are using some other scent instead of beaver castor, just dip a small stick in the scent and fasten it to the bank. Fasten

method for the s

e beaver will step into the trap in trying to reach them. Have the fresh cut ends of the sticks showing plainly, and make your set near the house or dam so th

s all right in the fall, when the beaver is laying in his food for the winter, but is not much good in the spring. Some trappers set the trap a foot or more from the shore, where the water is about six inches deep,

on the upper side of the dam, just where the trail leads over. Be sure to fasten the trap so that the animal will drown, as if it is not

you are likely to catch one almost anywhere along the streams. When setting traps in this way, it is best to drench the set with water to remove the human scent. The b

winter, as the beaver's food is still in good condition, and they will not take bait well; moreover you are likely to frighten them and make them ha

s apart. If the bottom is very hard, you will have to freeze the sticks to the ice, to hold them in place. This may be done by throwing snow in the water, and packing it around the sticks and against the edge of the ice. When the pen is completed, cut a piece of green poplar about 1 1/2 or 2 inches thick and two or three feet lon

rap Set

ng to the cut. If the bottom is of thin mud, as is often the case, you will have to make a bed for the trap, by sinking a bunch of evergreen boughs inside of the pen. It is also best to f

ull the bait out of the pen. When he finds it fast, he cuts it off at the entrance of the pen, takes it to the house to eat it; this sharpens his appetite, makes him more courageous, and he finally ventures

them down firmly into the bottom, about six inches apart, close up to the stakes, on the inside of the pen. These bait sticks must be long enough to reach above the ice, so that they will freeze fast at t

the trap on the end of the pole and tie it with a string, to hold it in place. Now, cut an oblong hole in the ice, and place the pole in the water in an inclined position so that the trap is about twelve inches bel

beavers are likely to carry it away, trap and all. Poplar and cottonwood make the

er, make as little noise as possible, and do n

re near the pond where the beavers are located. In w

wish to know if it is inhabited, examine the house, and if the s

and shove down a piece of green poplar, filling the hole with snow. Examine it in a

ails their tracks are obliterated by the food which they drag into the water. The trapper does

Musk