Orange bugs on beaver

[redi]

I noticed small orange bugs on some beaver I caught today right after I pulled them from the water. I have heard of water fleas, could these be water fleas?

[IBspoiled]

I would leave my beaver alone if it had bugs on it   Do you have a microscope to inspect with,the internet is your friend with this stuff.

[JakeLand]

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[boneaddict]

Great article jakeland.   I always wondered what they were. I assumed mites, and they creeped me out.  I think every beaver I've caught has had them. 

[Jason]

I would leave my beaver alone if it had bugs on it  

I'm sure nobody will touch your beaver with those bugs on it

[buckcanyonlodge]

Some beavers also have fleas... I know because the first beaver I trapped was infested with them. It had the orange bugs too. All beaver I trapped after that were put in a garbage bag and sprayed with flea spray. Before I wised up , my skinning room had to be fogged to kill all the fleas. And yes, I do know what a flea looks like.

[grundy53]

Beaver bugs

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[JakeLand]

Some beavers also have fleas... I know because the first beaver I trapped was infested with them. It had the orange bugs too. All beaver I trapped after that were put in a garbage bag and sprayed with flea spray. Before I wised up , my skinning room had to be fogged to kill all the fleas. And yes, I do know what a flea looks like.

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  Of all beaver I've caught most have had these orange little Beatles but I've never had any with fleas

[redi]

Thank you all for your response. This is the first time I have seen these. The beaver was only out of the water 10 minutes before I saw them crawling around and was in the trap less than 24 hours so he was fresh.

[JakeLand]

I wonder why they aren't on muskrats I've never seen them on a rat

[Humptulips]

I have never heard of a beaver that did not have "beaver fleas". Yes they are beetles but I do not think they are parasites. They are codependent with beavers. They eat the dead skin and without that beavers would have problems with matting of their fur.

When I was catching a lot of beaver they would get in your hair. Very disconcerting because you can feel them crawling around. They don't live long but they will drive you crazy. I always carried a fine toothed comb to comb them out when I felt one.
How do they get in your hair? Crawl off the beaver and onto your clothes when packing them out. They always go up and end up in your hair.

[Kit Carson]

Thanks for sharing that info. The symbiotic relationship between the beaver skin and the beetles is quite fascinating.

Humptulips, would you go as far as to say that beavers could not exist without these parasites? Or they would just have a much tougher time with dead skin/matting of fur?

After further research, it seems to me this is an example of what is known as "mutualism"

[Humptulips]

I can't say beavers would not survive without the beetles but I do know occasionally you will catch a beaver that has severe dandruff and it seems like the fur always has fur balls in it when that happens.

[Jonathan_S]

I hate it when you're lying in bed after a night of skinning and that tingling feel happens.  I usually keep my hair very short when water trapping for that reason.

I'm not sure how quickly they die after being off the beaver but it's always seemed within 24-48 hrs that they are gone or dead.