Maryland rocked by third beaver attack in weeks after 2 animals test positive for rabies

Maryland wildlife officials are searching for a beaver that attacked a 10-year-old girl at a state park, marking the state's third reported beaver attack in less than three weeks.

The girl was swimming and wading with an organized group at Seneca Creek State Park in Montgomery County when a beaver attacked and bit her around 3:30pm Thursday, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Camp counselors intervened and removed the beaver from the girl before the animal escaped into the water, DNR said. The girl suffered three lacerations to her upper leg and was taken by family members to Suburban Hospital in Bethesda for treatment.

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No other injuries were reported.

The attack occurred at a bend in Seneca Creek near Berryville Road, close to the Potomac River. DNR closed the area, including roughly one mile of trail and river access points, until further notice while wildlife teams search for the beaver.

Other parts of Seneca Creek State Park, including the Lake Area off Clopper Road in Gaithersburg, remain open.

A separate group of people canoeing in the area also reported a beaver attempting to charge one of their boats, but no one was injured, according to DNR.

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The Seneca Creek attack follows two beaver attacks at Cunningham Falls State Park in Frederick County, more than 36 miles away.

A beaver attacked a 13-year-old swimmer at Cunningham Falls on July 26. Another beaver bit a 19-year-old fisherman on the ankle in the park's South Beach Day Use area on Aug. 5.

The fisherman took himself to Meritus Medical Center in Hagerstown, where he received treatment for rabies exposure and a tetanus shot, DNR said.

Natural Resources Police caught and euthanized the beavers involved in both Cunningham Falls attacks. Both animals later tested positive for rabies.

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Following the second attack, the Maryland Park Service closed the Houck Day Use Area, the adjacent boat ramp and Big Hunting Creek above the lake while wildlife officials investigated the incidents.

DNR said the Seneca Creek attack is not considered related to the Cunningham Falls cases because of the distance between the parks and the home range and social behavior of beavers.

Health department data also show no indication of a rabies outbreak in either Frederick County or Montgomery County, according to DNR.

Beaver attacks on people are rare, the agency said, and are thought to primarily involve animals infected with rabies. Before this year's incidents, the last recorded beaver bites in Maryland confirmed to involve rabid animals occurred in 2021 and 2015.

Beavers typically avoid conflict with people, according to DNR. The agency recommends maintaining a minimum distance of 25 yards from the animals in the wild.