CPW unveils statewide beaver conservation strategy proposing habitat mapping, coexistence tools and drainage-level harvest caps

Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff presented a draft statewide beaver conservation and management strategy on Jan. 14 that combines expanded mapping and monitoring with new management tools intended to grow beaver-influenced wetlands while limiting conflict with people and infrastructure.

The plan, developed after yearlong internal and public engagement, calls for improving statewide beaver wetland maps and occupancy estimates using the Colorado Beaver Activity Mapper (COBAM), identifying ‘‘Beaver Restoration Opportunity Watersheds’’ at the HUC‑10 scale, increasing voluntary use of nonlethal coexistence tools such as pond levelers and culvert cages, and standardizing translocation permits and quarantine procedures to reduce pathogen and aquatic nuisance species risks.

Why it matters: beaver-created wetlands provide water storage, groundwater recharge and habitat for numerous species, but expanding beaver populations can also cause conflicts with roads, irrigation infrastructure and private property. The strategy aims to make restoration…