Beaver were all but extinct in the state by the turn of the century, prompting the Maine Legislature to ban all trapping of the animals in 1899. The trapping ban was lifted in 1956, and there are now an estimated 50,000 beaver in Maine. Beaver activities conserve water and create essential wetland habitat, with nearly half the state's inland ospreys nesting and feeding in waters created by beaver dams. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife field station in Sidney receives an estimated 70 calls per week from people with beaver problems. Details.
Cole, John N., "Beaver were all but extinct in the state by the turn of the century, prompting t" (1996). Maine News Index – Maine Times. 1746.