Month: May 2012

The Sweet Smell of Success in Cornwall

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, City Reports, Creative Solutions May 31, 2012

Beavers 1 – Smart City Manager 1 – Nasty Politicians 0 – Beavergate Team Presents to Cornwall Ontario City Council

CFN – I’m used to covering Cornwall City Council, but Monday night was special as I was part of a group to present to Council. Wyatt Walsh led the charge by asking CFN for help with the beaver trapping in Guindon Park. What happened from there is a text book case of abusive and ignorant attitudes from elected officials in response to an overwhelming demand from the public and what seems to be some petty personal response by some councilors and one particular manager to this scribbler and CFN.

Looks like the beaver-beleaguered city of Cornwall Ontario had an unbelievably exciting public wave on tuesday evening. You won’t want to skip reading the entire account here. Rebecca Sorrell, who had been promoting humane ways to live with beavers in person, on camera and to the media for weeks and weeks, was given time to address the council. And many people showed up to support the cause.

Rebecca spoke for our group. She greeted council in French and the proceeded to outline our journey and the hugely generous offer by The Association for the Protection of Fur-Bearing Animals from BC that will be sending down an expert to implement devices that will preclude trapping as well as training city staff and volunteers. Those actions hopefully will forever banish Conibear traps from Guindon Park and we’re hoping that council pass such a by-law in the fall stating that.

Congratulations Team Cornwall! And Congratulations Furbearer defenders who raised money for this install that will be undertaken by our young friend Adrian Nelson! I am so proud of all of you, and remembering our dynamic city council meeting lo these many years ago, I’m honestly jealous of the civic buzz you must be feeling right now! Since we couldn’t get a quote from the beavers, here are some comments from the heroine herself….

These last few weeks have truly been an eye opening experience for me. I have learned first hand that the combined power of a group of individuals in search of a common goal is virtually unstoppable.

“I started this journey to save the beavers simply because I believed it was the right thing to do and a good opportunity to teach a life lesson to my daughter. I never would have imagined that I would be the one gaining the most from it. It truly restores my faith in humanity to see how united everyone was for our cause and to see how capable we were as a whole. It warms my heart to know that I had a role in evoking change in my community with the help of so many amazing people.

The friendships I have harvested during this battle will no doubt prove to become lifetime commitments. For all intents and purposes it would appear as though we achieved our goal. We saved the beavers of Guindon Park and we have pushed the city of Cornwall in the direction of progressive and humane change. I am looking forward to many evenings spent at Guindon Park observing these amazing creatures at work and I sleep soundly with the knowledge that my family will be safe in doing so.

From the bottom of my heart, to all involved, I extend the most sincere gratitude and thanks. To quote a lifetime hero of mine, Mr. Jack Layton, “Don’t let them tell you it can’t be done.” I certainly didn’t this time nor will I for future battles on the horizon. This is only the beginning. The time for change is upon us and I have a new found confidence that not only is it possible but a certain reality.”

Beavers Abroad and Abreast

heidi08 Beavers, Beavers elsewhere, City Reports, Environmental, Friends of Martinez Beavers May 30, 2012

If I had to choose a favorite animal it would be the beaver

STACEY COLE

Nature Talks

Unionleader New Hampshire

IF I HAD TO PICK a favorite animal, the beaver would find itself heading the list. Oh, I know the placement of dams built by these wondrous creatures can upset folks who have different land-use objectives, but I really enjoy their company.

Now that’s the kind of opening paragraph that makes me sigh, settle back in my chair, pick up the coffee and look forward to a good read. Thanks Stacey (who I read is a 90 year- old man and an award winning writer.) Beavers are your favorite? Gosh, I know just what you mean!

Beaver ponds attract many other animals and, with the exception of river otters, beavers appear quite willing to share their pond with them. I came to that conclusion several years ago when the first pair of beavers constructed a dam. They turned our original half-acre “dug” pond into a nearly two- acre body of water. In time, the enlarged pond attracted many species of birds including wild turkeys, grackles, song sparrows, scarlet tanagers, catbirds and several kinds of warblers. These birds built nests among the various shrubs and small trees that grew around the pond’s edge.

Ahh, what a nice observation! It makes me think of the 2008 research by Hilary Cooke and Steve Zack that beaver chewed trees create ideal nesting habitat for migratory and song birds! Of course, even if a fellow wasn’t a crazy research reader and just sat still and WATCHED his eyes would eventually teach them all about the good they do for the ecosystem. Stacey goes on to say that a friend gave him the article about blue herons nesting in flooded dead trees at beaver ponds, and how much he enjoyed it. Honestly, Stacey is a national treasure. Go read the entire article!

Just one problem with Stacey’s writing as far as I can see

Our beaver pond has always attracted both great blue and green herons. As far as I have observed, there are no fish left of any size.

Um…what do you think those all those birds are doing at your pond if there’s no fish? Come to think of it, why did the old beaver have to chase away the otter in the first place if the otter didn’t have really delicious things to eat? Trust me. There are fish in those ponds.

splittail — Green Heron Catches Splittail at Third Dam: Cheryl Reynolds

Also this morning there’s a beaver revisit in the Martinez Patch. Reporter Jim Caroompas wants to know why the beavers are still controversial even after they have not caused problems for 5 years? He says he’s not exactly a fan, but just genuinely wants to know why the beavers are still disliked. Maybe you can go help by posting your thoughts.

This is Martinez, where even aquatic furry critters become lightning rods for politics. But I don’t understand, now that the fears about the beavers bringing floods and doom to downtown have passed, why they are still the target of so much animosity in some. What have they done other than bring us visitors? Created an active creek eco-system that now includes muskrats, turtles, and other denizens? Brought us national publicity?

I can’t imagine whether this is a genuine question. Doesn’t he remember that the beavers attack was waged by some of the most powerful players in the city; wealthy men who still wield massive powers that affect every ‘pocket‘ of Martinez. (And if you’re a local reader, yes that was a pun). Honestly, hasn’t he heard of the applicable Eratosthenes theorem? I thought everyone learned it by heart in grade school.

I believe its latin name is “sorecus loserium.”

A 50-state Strategy for Beavers?

heidi08 Beavers, Beavers elsewhere, City Reports, Creative Solutions May 29, 2012

There’s a lull in the beaver-trapping news, and I thought it was as good a time as any to show you the other side of what I do with beaver news. Usually I write the reporter, the paper, and any named officials I can find. (Finding officials whose email is unlisted has actually become a weird kind of challenge to me, and I am always thrilled when I crack the code.) Usually the paper will call you first to find out if you are a real human and they have permission to print. Sometimes it just gets printed. Even by recent standards, this was a particularly productive week.

Letter to the Editor: Beavers Have Impact on Wildlife

May 27, 2012 1:15 am

Great article Thursday about driving in to see some beaver dams in the wilderness. Of course, beaver dams create wetlands and attract wildlife whether they’re in the backwoods or in the center of town! Five years ago, resident pressure forced my northern California city to install a flow device to allow some local beavers to stay and now, because of the dams, we regularly see heron, wood duck, steelhead, otter and even mink in our tiny urban stream! Beavers aren’t that hard to see if you know when to look.

Mr. Bandolin’s comments about beavers were interesting. Willow can usually keep up with beaver appetite since more wetlands create more willow. Beaver populations tend to stabilize since offspring leave to seek their own territories at two years. However one variable that really affects whether willow can replenish as fast as beavers chew is the issue of “browse pressure.”

I hope everyone reads your fantastic article and really spends time thinking about the relationship between beavers and wildlife. We are holding our fifth beaver festival to celebrate just that, and they are having their first this year in Utah. One chapter of Audubon in Idaho recently did a “beaver count” because the animals have such an impact on birdlife! Here on the Pacific coast we are realizing that they might be the only salvation to our dwindling salmon populations.

HEIDI PERRYMAN, PH.D.

Martinez, Calif. (Editor’s note: Heidi Perryman is the president and founder of Worth A Dam; website, www.martinezbeavers.org/wordpress.)

Colorado

Living with beavers Heidi Perryman, Ph.D.,

President & Founder Worth A Dam Martinez, Calif.

Re. “Beavers gnawing along Tenmile Creek,” SDN, May 26

Great article about the Tenmile Creek beavers. It is a good reminder that even though beavers can bring challenging behaviors, humans who are up for the challenge reap huge benefits for birds, fish, wildlife, water quality and storage. My own city decided to “live with” some local beavers by installing a flow device that has controlled the pond height for five years. (They aren’t that hard to see!) Now we regularly also see heron, wood duck, otter, steelhead and even mink in our tiny urban stream! We have a yearly beaver festival (http://bit.ly/K42Or4) and work hard to teach other cities that beavers are worth having around. Check out the new issue of the Atlantic Monthly for a reminder!

Remember that trees you want to protect can be wrapped with wire or painted with sand to discourage chewing. Since you’re in Colorado you also have renowned beaver expert Sherri Tippie in Aspen to help with any challenges that might arise.

www.martinezbeavers.org/wordpress

(I received a call last night from the Yellowknife paper in the Northwest territories asking to publish my recent letter. It hasn’t run yet, but here is the text in case you’re interested. Aside from Scotland, this is the most distant letter that has ever been published. I’m weirdly pleased.)

Aside from the mayor’s impossibly colorful description of beaver trampolines and residents using ‘rubber paint’ to bounce beavers away from their poplars, I hope Yellowknife has looked for real solutions? Obviously beavers are a keystone species that create essential wetlands for fish, birds, wildlife and important game species. Killing them to protect trees is a little like destroying automobiles to prevent speeding – it works but at what cost? A better solution than chicken wire (since beavers are way bigger than chickens) is to wrap the tree with galvanized steel wire, or less obtrusively to paint it with a latex paint that matches the color of the bark mixed with heavy mason sand. This has to be repeated every year for it to work. Remember that beaver ‘chewed’ trees will still coppice and create ideal bushy nesting habitat for migratory and songbirds. Why not have residents of the lake plant swift-growing willow along the shore to provide an easy food source and better riparian border? Our city made a commitment to tolerate our local beavers 5 years ago and implemented real solutions to the challenges they posed. Now we regularly see heron, steelhead, otter and even mink in our tiny urban stream.

Any city smarter than a beaver can keep a beaver, and those most interested in watershed protection and saving taxpayer dollars know why they should.

Heidi Perryman, Ph.D.

President & Founder

Worth A Dam

Letters to the Editor about beavers isn’t a spectator sport! Anyone can do it! Show us your published letter and Worth A Dam will send you a free beaver thank you!

Glass Half Full Update…

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, Educational, Environmental May 28, 2012

Beavers gnawing along Tenmile Creek

By Janice Kurbjun Summit Daily News

When you stumble across a mountain pond, a thicket of willows or high alpine meadows, you’re typically looking at the work of a beaver. They’re critical for the green wetland areas we call riparian. Without them, the ecosystem can and did change dramatically.

Today, it’s a landscape of fast-flowing streams and invitingly open banks.

What it used to be before beavers were trapped to extremely low populations was a landscape of stopped-up water that brought life to arid mountain valleys. Evidence of that landscape on a small scale can be seen up the Swan River Valley, as Tiger Road turns into the dirt roads following the forks of the river. There, the stream slows to a trickle, evidencing an active beaver population. The valley is flooded with water, creating a green expanse between the rocky cliffs that surround.

Now that’s what I call a delightful beaver read! Janice discusses beaver controversy but makes it clear that beaver benefits are worth the challenge. No surprise. The article is from Colorado where they have personally had the benefit of the very most dynamic beaver teacher for decades. I just found this on Youtube from the recent Aspen Natualist Nights “Beaver: Nuisance or Opportunity?”. It may be longer than you have time for this morning, but I promise you it’s very, very worth it. There are lovely discussions of her work with Skip and the comments at the end about the injured beaver she rehabbed are among the most beautiful words I have ever heard.

On to more beaver goodness. This is a joyous beaver day! And lets just pause to say I got an email this morning from the city council of Yellow Knife thanking me for my email about how to protect trees. I’m hopeful that the information will help.

Beavers helping reshape Clinton nature sanctuary

By AMY NEFF ROTH Observer-Dispatch

“Studying a single colony for a prolonged length of time, and gauging their effect on a specific habitat has been and continues to be a fascinating endeavor,” Perry said. “Also, year to year, they continue to surprise me with some aspect of their behavior that I haven’t seen before.”

Their impact on the nature sanctuary is impossible to miss. They’ve turned two creeks into nine ponds, building at least 16 dams of varying sizes and three lodges.

The new wetlands – and resulting dead trees with nesting cavities – have drawn a variety of animals to the sanctuary, including wood ducks, hooded mergansers, herons, kingfishers, flycatchers, woodpeckers, turtles, trout and dragonflies.

As one woman who has also watched a single beaver colony impact a creek for 5 years, I can’t tell you how firmly I agree! This is a great article and a very delightful read. Spring Hill Farm Cares is a good friend of Beavers: Wetlands and Wildlife and has learned first hand from an excellent pair of teachers. They produce films for BWW and work hard to teach about their value in the ecosystem.

Perry knows that his days with the beavers are numbered. He’s surprised they’ve stayed this long and he knows they’ll leave once their food supply disappears. Looking at the poplars and pussy willows on the property, he gives them another couple years, he said.

Once the beavers go, their dams will start to leak. The ponds will dry up, creating silt-rich meadows. But as the trees grow back, more beavers will probably come.

Until then, Perry will study other colonies, but he’ll miss these beavers. “Definitely, when they leave, our nature preserve will be a bit like a house after the children have grown up and moved away,” he said. “We will miss them and also the ponds that they so faithfully maintained.”

We are NOT going to talk about that (she sniffed crisply), but go enjoy the great read anyway and I’m thinking Matt might need a little wine tasting vacation in the Napa Valley around the first of August? What a great beaver end to memorial day weekend!

Beaver Lessons from YK

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, City Reports, Creative Solutions, Creek Seekers Poetry Contest, Educational, Environmental May 28, 2012

Yellowknife is the capital of the North West Territories, about 1500 miles north of Montana. It’s the kind of place that when you look at it on a map you think ‘Holy tomale, Canada is BIG’. The Northwest Territories were added to the Canadian Confederation in 1870 (Since HBC had killed all the beavers, they really didn’t need it anymore) and it is so far north that about half of it sits above the tree line. It is the location of the first Diamond mine in Canada, and an unbelievable amount of other gold, silver and increasingly sinister kinds of mines, including radium and uranium. Winter temperatures of -25 are not uncommon and it is fair to say that the population, as a rule, is required to be somewhat hardy.

So I was very interested to read this from the 4-term mayor of Yellowknife in a recent story about whether to trap some local beavers that have been chewing trees. Gord Van Tighem has been a popular mayor of the most populated town in the region (about 20,000 – half of the entire population of NT). He actually used to be a trapper for the government of Alberta and recently warned that the animals can be dangerous.

“They can use their tails like a trampoline and will launch themselves at you. If they get a hold of you, they will snip your arm in one bite.”

Trampoline? Launch? Really, Gord?

Oops. This seems as good a time as any to note that the appropriate way to address a mayor of the North West territories is “His Worship”. So let me correct that and say, “trampoline, launch, really, your worshipfulness?” Now I have no doubt that an animal that chews through a poplar or maple in a matter of minutes could just as easily slice through a humerus. And I’m pretty sure that when you’re trying to kill them beavers can put up a fight. But I can’t help myself, as much as I’ve tried to make allowances, I’m just going to have to take issue with “trampoline“.

Wikipedia notes that ‘according to circus folklore, the trampoline was supposedly first developed by an artiste named du Trampolin, who saw the possibility of using it as a trapeze safety net – the story of du Trampolin is almost certainly apocryphal, and no documentary evidence has been found to support it. There is also an old Inuit tradition (Nalukataq) that involved bouncing an individual on a walrus skin to celebrate the hunt. The community all gathered together to launch the lucky member in a gravity-free homage to the divine who provided for them.

These are colorful, historic and fairly plausible stories. A beaver making a pogo stick of its own tail, (which is not made of rubber, has no springs and happens to have a skeletal structure that looks very much like vertebrae) to propel itself – whether in attack, greeting or amorous advance – is simply NOT plausible. Or, as any self-respecting paleophysicist would argue: possible.

Which is not to say the city of Yellowknife is without beaver comprehension. After a resident found a dead beaver on the trail last year, they have agreed to ‘relocate’ the beavers humanely. Check this out:

Ian Ellsworth, a renewable resources officer, oversees two wildlife officers who check suitcase-like live traps at the lake every day. He said the department is trying to relocate the beavers but people are interfering with the traps. Signs are now posted warning people to stay away from them.

“We check them in the morning and we are finding that someone throws a rock or stick into the traps to set them off,” said Ellsworth. “That is the issue we are kind of dealing with right now.”

Ah, you have to love anyone out walking their dog in the morning who goes out of their way to trigger a trap so that beavers roam free! Of course, one never knows whether these valiant actions are pro-beaver or anti-magistrate, but as we learned firsthand in Martinez, both forces often play for the same team. I imagine that the NT attracts a somewhat libertarian, live and let live, populace. But there is this:

Colleen Zorn, a resident on Ballantyne Court, is one resident who said she wants the beavers to stay. Her backyard backs onto the lake but she does not have a lot of poplar trees that attract the rodents. “I have three young kids and we love to go for walks on the trail to see the beaver,” she said. “My two-year-old comes home with beaver sticks on a regular basis. He walks on that trail every single day and goes to see the beaver.”

She said the beavers should not be removed because they have been residing on the lake long before people arrived. “The beavers were there first and we are in their yard,” she said. “They are only going to eat up the food source and move on. They will go to another little pond where there are poplars and stuff to eat. I also think (the beavers are) only going to improve the trail because now you can see the lake.”

Colleen! We like you already! Have you ever considered the possibility of starting a beaver festival in YK? Since your elected officials are busily preaching the kind of coffee-spitting misinformation from the pulpit that is so LOL-worthy it will likely be forwarded again and again from Ottawa to Ohio, it might be time for a little community education and common sense! We’d be happy to help out with ideas and planning.

In the meantime tell the tree-suffering residents of the lake that wrapping with chicken-wire would only work if beavers were the same size as chickens. Use galvanized fencing wire or abrasive painting and read here for details. Any city smarter than a beaver can keep a beaver, and if you move these animals more will just come take their place.

A final note: Readers of this website will be happy to know that two Martinez beavers were seen this morning mudding the primary and secondary dams respectively, and thankfully neither of them happened to use their tail as a trampoline to launch a vicious, de-limbing, attack. Whew.