SALEM, Ore. — The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will hold a meeting of the Beaver Work Group on Thursday, May 12 from 9 a.m. to noon at Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife headquarters in Salem.

The agenda includes a review of Eastern and Western Oregon beaver relocation guidelines and updates on a landowner incentives survey and beaver research projects.

The mission of the Beaver Work Group is to identify research and information gaps to help improve our understanding of beaver ecology and beaver management so we can maximize the ecological benefits that beaver provide, especially for ESA-listed coast coho, and minimize any negative impacts. The work is done within the guidelines of existing rules and statutes.

Identified in the Oregon Conservation Strategy as important to wetland creation and maintenance, the beaver is Oregon’s state animal.

The meeting is open to the public, and public comment will be taken at the end of the meeting.