Gearing up for their first birthday, at least two kits were at work last night on the secondary dam. Jon saw our little reed-loving dam builder packing layers of tules on the surface, and another beaver lurking supportively nearby. What does this mean to the future? Will this effort be sufficient to stop the summer dryness? Will it lure Dad or GQ back to the colony or are our orphans effectively ‘dispersers’ now, without ever leaving home, like when so much of america started working for a different company but doing the same job at the exactly the same place? We can only stay tuned! And enjoy the spring as it unfolds.
Gosh this NEVER happens. Some inexplicable and uncanny beavers are blocking a culvert in Salem and threatening traffic. Because this kind of behavior is extremely rare and no one EVER has invented a proven solution for it in the past, the authorities need a special permit so they can kill these animals right away, even though trapping season is over. Do you think they’ll be able to get one in time? I’m on pins and needles.
Salem leaders have hired a trapper to remove beavers from a stretch of Rattlesnake Ledge Road that nearly flooded last week after the animals blocked a pair of drainage culverts that run underneath the street. It’s a recurring problem that officials say creates a safety hazard for motorists and leaves the town liable if there’s an accident.
First Selectman Kevin Lyden said the town is working with the state Department of Environmental Protection on the effort, and a long-term solution could be in place soon to keep the animals away permanently. Read more: Beaver dams create potential road flooding hazard in Salem
You’ll be happy to know that Department of Environmental Protection took it upon themselves to protect Salem’s culverts from its beavers and allowed the family to be exterminated. I’m told the selected selectman assures us that even though this is a temporary solution he will be planning a permanent solution for NEXT TIME. I can’t wait.
Okay, I’ve only written about this about this 438 times, in counties from Georgia to Saskatchewan, but maybe its time for an easy visual syllogism instead:
If this
Then this
Still too esoteric and subtle? Just watch the movie version:
Wild Heart Ranch is a labor of love in Oklahoma that works closely with our friend the Skunk Whisperer. They rehabilitate injured everythings and do their best to give them a second (or first) chance on life. Cheryl pointed out to me that they recently acquired a baby beaver, who was joined last night by another baby beaver that had been trapped in fishing line for two days. I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty certain that is the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen. Here’s what she wrote about the second kit last night
New beaver kit. Pretty bad shape. He’s been floating caught in fishing line. Stomach is a mess. Little guy was hypothermic and dehydrated. Going to be a long night.
And this morning…
We are watching little Buddy Beaver around the clock tonight. He has been through a lot, but when I scratched his back, he kicked his little leg. Thats a good sign. Reflexes are starting to work and his body temp… is FINALLY stable. It took HOURS to get his core temp up. I am hopeful, and little Justin is in there with him, snuggled up. Breaks my heart what this baby went through and survived. I want so badly to pull him through this. Brave little thing. It must have been an absolute horror to have been snagged in fishing line, his mother lost, at least 2 nights alone bobbing in the water, and the rescuers said their were copperheads everywhere. When he came in, his mouth was bloody from trying to chew himself free. He is younger and smaller than justin. Breaks my heart!
later
Wild Heart Ranch Good news! Little beaver kit not only pulled through, but is up and active and playing with Justin Beaver this morning! I want to have a T shirt made that says “I ♥ B-12 & Pancake syrup!!” Thats always seemed to be the ticket. Heat them back up SLOWLY, a little sugar, a little B-12 shot, VIOLA! If they havent been too cold for too long, we have a lot of luck with this method, and by golly prayers help too! 🙂
Well, I can think of one t-shirt you’ll be getting right away. Their website offers account of the compassionate origins of Wild Heart Ranch…
Annette King Tucker began this venture in 1996 after purchasing a small farm outside of Claremore Oklahoma to “get away” from it all. Assisting wayward animals having always been a passion, it was natural for Annette to begin populating her farm with various animals in need. It wasn’t long before a friend brought her a pair of orphaned raccoon kits, and the rest is history! She discovered her life’s purpose in the welfare of two little masked bandits having nowhere else to go, and Wild Heart Ranch was born!
Hmm. Labor of love indeed. Up in the Sierras where my parents live, there used to be a wildlife rehabber who attended their church. She’d sit through mass bottle feeding tiny foxes or raccoons because they couldn’t go without being fed for the time it would take her to get to town on her own. She worked 365 days a year, from dawn to dawn and lived on a shoestring of donations from kind-hearted folk who knew that this work was worth doing. She happened to be an ex-cop who said she had retired because ‘that work was too demanding’.
Well, good luck taking care of these little beavers, and let us know if you need anything. We are grateful everyday for the work of folks like you.
Well, that was the easiest no-discussion approval Worth A Dam has ever received! It was a no-brainer, everyone smiled and was excited to get our event brochure from last year and then we were out the door. No persuasion necessary. Mind you, it is generally agreed that the Parks, Recreation,Marina & Cultural Commission is the very kindest and least horrible governing body in all of Martinez, and we have always had the best reception from them generally, but sitting there with their automatic approval displayed before the city’s engineer, I almost felt like the Worth A Dam tradition was a beloved part of familiar Martinez.
Almost.
Yesterday two things happened that were surprising. Regular readers might remember the lovely article about Amanda Parish and Joe Cannon in Spokane magazine. It prompted an attaboy letter to the author, Paul Haeder, from me, combined with a doubtful query about one of the facts in it. Paul wrote me back appreciatively and said something like, you know, I have this radio program maybe sometime you’d agree to be interviewed? I benignly said ‘of course’ (which is what I always say when people ask me to talk about beavers) and thought no more of it.
Yesterday I got an email from Paul saying that his guest had dropped out at the last minute and would I be willing to do a late earthday ‘restoring watersheds with beavers’ interview? We are recording it today, but it will air on Friday at 6:00 if you’re up for coffee and beavers. It will be live streamed at www.kyrs.org. I’m thinking the call letters stand for “Keep Your Rodents Safe” but I could be wrong.
Joe warned me that Paul can be a little bit quirky at times, at which I of course feigned shock and said “Eccentricity amongst beaver supporters? When does THAT ever happen?” In response Joe pointed me to this lovely picture of him from the Earthday review by the Spovangelist Blog, which he apparently spent most of in a beaver suit. Need I say more?
PS what are you doing in August Joe?
Addendum: My parents just pointed out today’s “Get Fuzzy”:
This kit (four days away from being called a yearling, brace yourselves) was swimming muddily under the footbridge at 5:45 when I arrived. I thought I just saw the tail end of him but he kept right on swimming down, scouping mud, and going into the hole under the tree there. I have no idea what he was doing, but he was making a trail of mud under the water. At one point he swam to the secondary dam, and looked at it, touched the banks and then swam back.
Beaver over pipe - Cheryl Reynolds
In the meantime it seemed like an army of muskrats were on the move in every direction. One followed the beaver into his mudded hole and another clambered over the primary dam. I could not begin to explain why we seem to have no muskrats at all some months and millions the next, but this is definitely muskrat madness month, so enjoy.
Muskrat- Cheryl Reynolds
After a bit more of this mudding drama the kit started to head upstream towards the primary dam. It is so shallow it riffles and this was a march. He was discouraged once by walkers on the bridge, but eventually made his way up the gravelly bed. It was terrifying to see him walk through what should be a swim, he is so vulnerable in so many ways, but lets hope it’s MOTIVATING to this little — umm — slacker.
Well, he hasn’t been completely slack. The dam does look better. More work on both sides of the pipe, although the right side is still running through with water and gaps so large a muskrat went through it. Hey guys, remember all that mud you were playing with at the footbridge? Just a suggestion but how about trying that on the sticks?
There’s way too much news this morning, but Jon’s hummingbird photo is up at the Cornell Urban bird website and facebook page, let’s praise the power companies when they get it right! I am also working on Cornell to start an “Urban beavers website”….but don’t hold your breath. I’m told they’ll blog about the relationship between beaver dams and songbirds soon!
Gearing up for their first birthday, at least two kits were at work last night on the secondary dam. Jon saw our little reed-loving dam builder packing layers of tules on the surface, and another beaver lurking supportively nearby. What does this mean to the future? Will this effort be sufficient to stop the summer dryness? Will it lure Dad or GQ back to the colony or are our orphans effectively ‘dispersers’ now, without ever leaving home, like when so much of america started working for a different company but doing the same job at the exactly the same place? We can only stay tuned! And enjoy the spring as it unfolds.
