Manor neighbors fight beaver eviction
MANOR, TEXAS (KXAN) – ShadowGlen is a master-planned community just over a dozen miles from downtown Austin.
While its affordable homes have compelled many to move to Manor, Texas, the community’s management has made it clear that not everyone -- or thing -- is welcome.
“We got a manager's report that [the community management] had found a wildlife removal company, and they were going to be using that company to remove the beavers,” said Alana Webre, who has lived in the neighborhood since 2022.
Webre said a family of beavers has charmed her community for quite some time.
“There's been reports,” she said. “People would very delightedly report, ‘Oh, I saw a beaver.’ Or [they would] take a picture. So they're rare sightings that we actually love.” Beavers are nocturnal, so Webre said most of the sightings happen at night.
The manager’s report was shared with KXAN. It stated that the manager had “received reports of beavers chewing up trees and making dens.” The report also stated they were looking into ways to remove the rodents “humanely.”
Capital Consultant Management Corporation, which manages ShadowGlen, declined to comment on this story.
After Webre received the report, she said she posted on her community’s Facebook page. She said most felt similarly and didn’t want the beavers evicted. Still, Webre said, the management company pushed forward with the plans.
“There's so much that they bring to us, and we just don't see anything about them as a detriment,” Webre said.
It is legal to remove beavers when they cause damage, according to the Texas A&M Agrilife Extension.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department described beavers as stubborn, often refusing to move from their chosen home, and that they can cause a great deal of damage.
Webre said she doesn’t think the ShadowGlen beavers will cause much monetary damage where they have chosen to live in the lake.
“We haven't heard back on what's going to happen next. We just would like to try to make it not happen because they're very beloved here,” Webre said.