Ann Arbor residents upset over decision to euthanize beavers at municipal golf course
A colony of beavers that took residence at the city-owned Leslie Park Golf Course in Ann Arbor, Michigan, met a tragic end after city and county officials decided to euthanize them.
The decision caused quite a controversy, as animal rights groups advocated for a more humane option to be explored in the wake of the decision.
Washtenaw County officials say the decision didn't come easily, and it didn't come out of convenience. Officials say there needed to be action due to the beavers' impact on not just the golf course, but also stormwater management, infrastructure and neighborhoods downstream.
"Relocating them on any land within the state of Michigan is not legal without the DNR signing off on that, and it's not something east of Oregon, maybe California," Harry Sheehan, Washtenaw County Water Resources Chief Deputy Commissioner, said.
Sheehan says an onsite meeting in May explored using a beaver pipe to regulate water flow without disturbing the colony, an outcome that wasn't guaranteed in this instance, as the beavers already started expanding their construction.
"The problem is they started to move upstream already," Sheehan said. "There's a concern they would move downstream as well."
The only approvable option left was removal, a death sentence for the colony. Sheehan said fostering the beavers isn't something they explored, but it's also unlikely to be approved by the DNR. It's an option the Humane Society of Huron Valley said they'd participate in if it could save future beaver colonies from the same fate.
"We have actually worked for many decades with wildlife, and we have humane wildlife removal services, so we'd be happy to work with them," said Wendy Welch of the Humane Society of Huron Valley.
Other advocates blame the DNR's labeling of beavers as a nuisance animal for the limited humane options available to deal with them in less rural settings.
"We cannot just have the same old attitudes that whatever is better for humans goes. Deeming someone to be a nuisance dictates how we treat them," said Bee Friedlander, president of the board of directors at Attorneys for Animals.
With beaver sightings becoming more common in Washtenaw County, there's a chance new colonies could move into the space this one left behind. Sheehan says the county will continue monitoring Traver Creek for new activity as they mull more humane solutions to potentially deal with them.
