Rain is not the only reason for flooding at McKinney’s Bonnie Wenk Park. A band of beavers and their dams have caused flooding in the park several times this year. The beaver dams first started causing problems when the city began renovating the north side of Bonnie Wenk Park in fall 2018. After a few months without issues, the beavers started causing problems again in June, McKinney Animal Control Supervisor De St. Aubin said in an email to Community Impact Newspaper. “[The beavers] have always been out there, but our interactions didn’t start until we started working on the area that comprises Phase II,” Michael Kowski, director of the McKinney Parks and Recreation Department, said in an email. The beavers dam the small creeks that flow throughout the park, resulting in flooding along hike and bike trails, roadways and playground equipment. “When they build a dam, the water tends to find a path around [structures] and pool in normally dry areas,” Kowski said in the email. “The dams also ... cause standing water in certain parts [of the park]. I wouldn’t define it as damage, rather it creates maintenance challenges.” In late February, McKinney Animal Control started trapping and relocating the beavers to private land outside of McKinney. At the same time, the parks department placed pipes around the dams to reroute water away from the dams. According to Kowski, the pipes are working. The city has relocated six beavers as of July 25, St. Aubin said in an email, and they are starting to trap again. St. Aubin said he is certain animal control could never catch them all. “As we continue to weave parks into our beautiful landscape, we accept that we must respect and work with the rhythm and behaviors of our local wildlife,” Kowski said in the email. “Beaver dams will always be a part of our parks system. And our skilled maintenance team is up to dealing with any challenges associated with their presence.”