call us.

Nate Norman: 435-757-3815

find us. 

We are located in Millville, UT. Please let us know if you are planning to visit us; as we are a locked facility and not open to the general public.  If you are a volunteer or have an appointment to meet us, you can get directions by clicking on the map below.  

The Beaver Ecology
​& Relocation Center team

Nate Norman

lead field biologist

Nate has been working in monitoring and restoration in upland and aquatic ecosystems for the past 25 years.  He has been working with beaver-related stream restoration for the past 5 years and has received training in several beaver management activities including the capture, holding, and release of beaver.  Nate was the first non-agency person in the state of Utah to become legally certified to perform these duties.  He has been working closely with both the UDWR and the U.S. Forest Service to develop protocols for managing beaver translocations.  He is also one of the first to become legally certified in the State of Washington to perform these services. ​

Nick Bouwes

director & lead biologist

Dr. Nick Bouwes is an adjunct faculty in the Department of Watershed Sciences (WATS) in the Quinney College of Natural Resources where he teaches classes on fish ecology, management of fish habitat, and stream restoration.  Dr. Bouwes is also the owner of Eco Logical Research, and a co-owner of Anabranch Solutions.
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Nick has been studying the effects of beaver on stream ecosystems and their effectiveness in stream restoration for over 13 yrs.  He has taught workshops and webinars on beaver-mediated restoration and beaver relocation to over 1000 people that has led to wide-scale adoption of the use of beaver by stream restoration practitioners.  Nick also is one of the few people in the state of Utah certified to capture, hold, and transport beaver for stream restoration purposes.    ​

Becky Yeager

volunteer coordinator

Becky Yeager serves as the Volunteer Coordinator for the Beaver Ecology and Relocation Center.  She enjoys being involved in the diverse duties at the Center, including the processing, trapping, and especially learning about beaver ecology and conservation. 

 Becky earned her BS and MS degrees from NMSU in Las Cruces, NM, and came to Cache Valley in 1992 when she accepted a position as a wildlife biologist. During that time, she specialized in federal and state-listed rare species. Outside of beaver conservation efforts, Becky established The Spirit Goat, a skin-care company, in 2002 (although she has since sold the business, she is still employeed as a formulator for other companies). Becky is also actively involved in monarch conservation and public outreach and has developed several pollinator-related websites for UDWR.  She annually monitors naturally occurring populations of monarchs in Cache Valley for organizations (such as Xerces) and UDWR and tags/releases adults for the Southwest Monarch Study based in Arizona.  Becky has most recently been involved in developing pollinator habitats for the state of Utah, cities, and other organizations. 
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