Rodent Control at Dams

Dam Safety: Rodent Control 

Rodents such as the groundhog (woodchuck), muskrat, and beaver are attracted to dams and reservoirs and can be quite dangerous to the structural integrity and proper performance of the embankment and spillway. Groundhog and muskrat burrows weaken the embankment and can serve as pathways for seepage. Beavers may plug the spillway and raise the pool level. Rodent control is essential in preserving a well-maintained dam. 

Ground Hog 

The groundhog is the largest member of the squirrel family. Its coarse fur is grizzled grayish brown with a reddish cast. Typical foods include grasses, clover, alfalfa sprouts, peas, lettuce, and apples. Breeding takes place during early spring (beginning at the age of one year) with an average of four or five young per litter, one litter per year. The average life expectancy is two or three years with a maximum of six years. Occupied groundhog burrows are easily recognized in the spring due to the groundhog's habit of keeping them cleaned out. Fresh dirt is generally found at the mouth of active burrows. Half-round mounds, paths leading from the den to nearby fields, and clawed or girdled trees and shrubs also help identify burrows and dens. When burrowing into an embankment, groundhogs stay above the phreatic surface (upper surface of seepage or saturation) to stay dry. The burrow is rarely a single tunnel. It is usually forked, with more than one entrance and with several side passages or rooms from 1 to 12 feet long. 

Groundhog Control 

Control methods should be implemented during early spring when active burrows are easy to find, young groundhogs have not scattered, and there is less likelihood of damage to other wildlife. In later summer, fall, and winter, game animals will scurry into groundhog burrows for brief protection and may even take up permanent abode during the period of groundhog hibernation. Groundhogs can be controlled by using fumigants or by shooting. Fumigation is the most practical method of controlling groundhogs. Around buildings or other high fire hazard areas, shooting may be preferable. Groundhogs will be discouraged from inhabiting the embankment of the vegetal cover is kept mowed. 

Muskrat 

The muskrat is a stocky rodent with a broad head, short legs, small eyes, and rich dark brown fur. Muskrats are chiefly nocturnal. Their principal food includes stems, roots, bulbs, and foliage of aquatic plants. They also feed on snails, mussels, crustaceans, insects, and fish. Usually three to five litters, averaging six to eight young per litter, are produced each year. Adult muskrats average one foot in length and three pounds in weight. The life expectancy is less than two years, with a maximum of four years. Muskrats can be found wherever there are marshes, swamps, ponds, lakes, and streams having calm or very slow moving water with vegetation in the water and along the banks. Muskrats make their homes by burrowing into the banks of lakes and streams or by building houses of bushes and other plants. Their burrowing begin from 6 to 18 inches below the water surface and penetrate the embankment on an upward slant. At distances up to 15 feet from the entrance, a dry chamber is hollowed out above the water level. Once a muskrat den is occupied, a rise in the water level will cause the muskrat to dig farther and higher to excavate a new dry chamber. Damage (and the potential from problems) is compounded where groundhogs or other burrowing animals construct their dens in the embankment opposite muskrat dens. 

Muskrat Control 

Barriers to prevent burrowing offer the most practical protection to earthen structures. A properly constructed riprap filter and filter layer will discourage burrowing. The filter and riprap should extend at least 3 feet below the water line. As the muskrat attempts to construct a burrow, the sand and gravel of the filter layer caves in and thus discourages den building. Heavy wire fencing laid flat against the slope and extending above and below the water line can also be effective. Eliminating or reducing aquatic vegetation along the shoreline will discourage muskrat habitation. Where muskrats have inhabited the area, trapping is usually the most practical method of removing them from a pond. 

Eliminating a Burrow 

The recommended method of backfilling a burrow in an embankment is mud-packing. This simple, inexpensive method can be accomplished by placing one or two lengths of metal stove or vent pipe in a vertical positions over the entrance of then den. Making sure that the pipe connection to the den does not leak, the mud-pack mixture is then poured into the pipe until the burrow and pipe are filled with the earth-water mixture. The pipe is removed and dry earth is tamped into the entrance. The mud-pack is made by adding water to a 90 percent earth and 10 percent cement mixture until a slurry or thin cement consistency is attained. All entrances should be plugged with the well-compacted earth and vegetation re-established. Dens should be eliminated without delay because damage from just one hole can lead to failure of a dam or levee. 

Beaver 

Beaver will try to plug spillways with their cuttings. Routinely removing the cuttings is one way to alleviate the problem. Trapping beaver may be done by the owner during the appropriate season, however, the nearest DNR, Wildlife Division office or DNR Conservation Officer should be contacted. 

Hunting and Trapping Regulations 

Because hunting and trapping rules change from year to year, Wildlife Division authorities should be consulted before taking any action. 

For additional information, please visit the DNR's Wildlife and Habitat website or you may contact: 

Dam Safety Program
EGLE, Water Resources Division
P.O. Box 30458
Lansing, Michigan 48909-7958
517-256-4458