Month: November 2022

NOT EVERYONE IN WASHINGTON STATE LIKES BEAVERS

heidi08 Who's blaming beavers now? November 25, 2022

Everyone knows that Washington is the smartest state in the country when it comes to beavers. Hardly a week goes by when I don’t see a headline boasting about all the wonderful things they do to help salmon and how they are going the extra mile just to keep them around. So when I saw this headline I was kind of means-spiritedly bemused. Like when the teachers pet in your fifth grade gets in trouble for smoking in the boys’ room.

How the world turns!

Big Lake residents fear another mudslide caused by beaver dam

With fears of another mudslide growing, many west Big Lake residents are tired of waiting for answers about what can done about a beaver dam uphill of the lake.

Memories of last fall’s mudslide, caused by a breach in a massive beaver pond uphill of homes, are fresh in the minds of residents, and their frustration about the lack of a fix came to the fore at a neighborhood meeting Monday.

Jim Beckett, who since last fall has bought the property on which the 17-acre pond sits, has no plans to do anything to fix the problem without a guarantee that he won’t be held responsible in the event of another mudslide.

See last year was an actual flood that wiped out the road which was widely believed to cause by a beaver dam washout. Even though NOAA predicted that the river was going to crest that weekend because there was a load of rain.

“On Friday, the National Weather Service put out a warning that the river was expected to crest in Mount Vernon late Friday night. According to NWS, the river reached 28.86 feet Friday which is considered minor flooding”

But still, why NOT blame a beaver dam if you get the chance? I mean making the county pay to kill some beavers is a helluva lot easier than reading a weather report and getting the neighbors together to lay sandbags or something.

County leadership has been aware of the threat the pond poses for years, but has failed to do anything, he said. Skagit County should be the one taking responsibility here, not a private landowner.

“The county, they dropped the ball,” he said. “I don’t want to get stuck with a bill.”

Neighbors have proposed pumping water out of the pond to reduce the immediate risk, then installing a pond leveling device to keep pressure from building behind the dam.

But little progress has been made to fix the problem since conversations started last spring.

Carolyn Bennett, one of the west Big Lake residents, said the neighbors have put forward a proposed solution, and she doesn’t understand why no one seems to be able to help.

So big Lake is a BIG LAKE with lots of streams feeding it. I can’t find a photo of a beaver pond but I assume there could be one. Not sure why beavers would live in one of those little streams when they have a big lake right near by. But okay, sure. Let’s say there’s a pond.

If mud and water again comes down the hill, “our houses will be in the lake,” she said Monday. Shelia Dodd said just pumping water out of the pond isn’t going far enough, and she’s tired of knowing that another mudslide could come at any moment.

She said she doesn’t want to hear about half-measures such as reducing the size of the pond, and feels the only way to solve this permanently is to remove the beavers and the dam entirely.

“If the beavers come back, take them out again,” she said. “It would make me sleep a lot better.”

Well she seems nice. Kill em all and if there are any survivors kill em again! The xena of beavers.

County Commissioner Peter Browning maintained that Beckett, as property owner, would be held legally liable, because flooding caused by the beaver dam is clearly a predictable problem.

“Once it’s predictable … you now own that liability,” he said.

At Monday’s meeting, Browning urged residents to put together a proposal for the commissioners, saying there may be some funding available to help pay for a fix.

But any plan hinges on permission from Beckett, which he says he will not give.

“I’m sure he will when he realizes he could potentially lose his property if there’s a lawsuit,” Browning said.

“That’s part of the neighbors’ job, to work with the landowner,” he said.

Alright Mr. Beckett, Let’s have a talk shall we? You are clearly a wise man who knows that beaver on the landscape make better wildlife and actually help slow down flooding. You installed a flow device to minimize the pressure on the dam and that was great. Your neighbors are still freaked out.

Maybe you are a hermit who would rather spend time with beavers than anyone in your neighborhood. I understand. Bit this is going to take beer. Lots of beer. You are going to have to have a lot of barbecues and talk about this over and over.

BE THANKFUL FOR BEAVERS

Happy Thanksgiving beaver heroes! I wish you all a day of family and friends and too much pie except for my Canadian friends who had that already. Had a nice chat about urban beavers with the science editor of the East Bay Times yesterday, so I’m expecting a good article on the horizon. This morning I’ll share this from the Fall Audubon issue sent to me by Laurie in Rocklin.

Beavers and their champions have a lot to be thankful for this year.

TELL BLM THAT BEAVERS IN WETLANDS IS NOT A COINCIDENCE

heidi08 Beavers and water, Beavers and Wetlands November 23, 2022

The life of a beaver is a life of exposure to the elements. I know beavers have fur coats they can waterproof and stay toasty but what about their feet? This is a lovely video by Jos Bakker but honest it makes me cold just to see that slushy water.
If you listen closely you can hear the little guy vocalize. We aren’t sure the other beaver is big enough to be a parent, maybe an older sibling?

There a nice article from the Bureau of Land Management this morning, observing that beavers make wetlands and not having beavers make drylands.

Spruce Creek rekindles its connection with wetlands in Summit County

In September 2022, Spruce Creek, a small perennial stream in Summit County managed within the Kremmling Field Office was reconnected to its floodplain and began to rehydrate over 22 acres of wetland habitat. Spruce Creek and nearby wetlands provide many benefits to the ecosystem, such as prime locations for moose, elk, beavers and habitat for genetically pure Colorado River Cutthroat Trout. Not only do wetlands provide habitat, but they naturally improve water quality, provide drought resiliency and well… they’re just beautiful!

In 2014, a case of tularemia, also known as “rabbit fever”, wiped out the beavers in this area and the unmaintained dams began to fail. Since beaver dams enhance wetlands and elevate the water table, when they began to deteriorate, the wetlands also began to deteriorate. By 2019, there were only a few small pools of water left in the wetlands and most of the area was disconnected from Spruce Creek.

Do I believe that Tularemia wiped out that beavers and not trappers? Well maybe I do. I guess its possible. Sure okay, I’ll play along. Saying that “Wetlands make prime habitat for beavers” is like saying banks are great places to find money. Or spider webs are great places for spiders to live. They’re there BECAUSE of the beavers. Beavers build and maintain them in the same way a spider builds and maintains its web. Only all kinds of other animals get to use it. Not just spiders.

The BLM began to work with our partners in 2020 to restore the wetlands. The BLM and Blue Valley Ranch replaced a culvert with a bottomless arch culvert, improving stream connectivity below the wetland complex. The ranch also moved their irrigation diversion downstream, improving flows in occupied habitat for the Cutthroat Trout. Beaver Dam Analogs, manmade structures to mimic natural beaver dams and attract beavers, were proposed to improve pool habitat. To maximize the benefits of the dams, the BLM worked with private landowners to build structures on both BLM and private lands. With help from Partners for Fish and Wildlife, EcoMetrics, Colorado Open Lands, Friends of the Lower Blue River, Upper Colorado River Watershed Group, and Rocky Mountain Youth Corps interns, we were able to construct 75 dam structures over a two-week period.

This restoration work has allowed Spruce Creek to reconnect with wetlands and the future looks promising for this ecosystem! Not only are we proud to support the environment on your public lands, but we are grateful to have wonderful local partners who understand the importance of our mission and providing the best public land experience possible.

I’m sure that sending the day in the creek is a lot more fun than what they usually do. But I bet beavers would do it better. And cheaper. And stick around to make repairs night after night.

MINNESOTA SAYS BEAVER BREED “EARLY AND OFTEN”

heidi08 Attitudes towards beavers November 22, 2022

You read a bunch of positive beaver articles in a row and you forget. Forget what we’re up against in fighting beaver misunderstandings and spreading beaver truths across the land. And then an article appears like this to remind you. And its like leaving the sauna and stepping into a cold shower.

What you should know about beavers in Minnesota

Beavers were a hot commodity during the 17th century fur trade and drove the Minnesota economy for 200 years, being hunted nearly to extinction.

Fortunately, they’re incredibly adaptable — and fertile. Weighing in between 35 to 55 pounds as adults (think midsize dog), beavers are the largest rodent in North America. Like other rodents, they breed early and often, with litters of as many as nine kits. They’ve rebounded to the point that hunters and trappers take more than 20,000 beavers a year without any risk to the overall population, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

They breed early and often? I suppose you don’t mean early in the morning? Because the research shows that most beavers have lived nearly a third of their lives before they can reproduce. And often? Are you referring to the fact that a female beaver enters estrus once a year? Would you call that often?

Oh and litter size? While I suppose litters of 9 kits have happened, I’d love to see the statistics on how often it occurs. Because a mother beaver has only 4 teats. So 2,3, or 4 is more common.

You should be very proud of this next paragraph. A lot of it is accurate,

Beavers are, of course, best known for building dams and lodges on lakes, rivers and streams. The structures protect them from predators and keep them and their food stores warm during the winter. If the water in their territory isn’t deep enough to prevent freezing, beavers construct a dam to make a pond that meets their needs. These can attract moose, deer, fish and amphibians, but can also bring them into conflict with humans, either by causing flooding or by destroying trees and other plant life.

Well sure they can cause problems but no worries. We can just kill them because they’re like kleenex or girls. They will always be another one to come along. On account of them breeding early and often.

I did not see this coming:

If a beaver family takes up residence on your property, the DNR recommends a prevention and management approach. Try protecting trees with tall hardware cloth cylinders, or planting native evergreens such as common juniper, which beavers don’t like. If they cause flooding or other damage, though, contact a local DNR office or look up the exact rules about beaver removal at dnr.state.mn.us.

Well, its worth a shot. Try protecting your trees and don’t kill those rodents right away.

Although they may be an annoyance, beavers are an important historical and ecological part of Minnesota. If you see a dam or hear the distinctive slap of their tail on the water, take the opportunity to observe these unique rodents from a respectful distance and appreciate their role in getting us to where we are today.

What do I know? Maybe by Minnesota standards this is a fiercely pro-beaver article. Maybe the author is actually going our on a limb to defend their honor. Maybe the entire state has some work to do.

THE NAVY IS MOVING THIS PROBLEM BUT FIXING THE NEXT ONE

heidi08 Beavers and salmon November 21, 2022

Sometimes I read an article and can’t decide how I feel about it. Inspired? Deflated? Confused? This is one of those because of all the things the navy has ever done with beaver population this has to be among the nicest. But it leaves me very, very frustrated.

For beavers, tall dams don’t always make good neighbors

Naval Station Everett and the Tulalip Tribes teamed up to remove a family of beavers. Now, they’re restoring salmon habitat.

It wasn’t difficult for Alicia Higgs, the station’s natural resources manager, to determine the cause. A family of beavers had set up camp in the drainage between the two lakes and gotten as busy as, well, beavers in building a dam to call home.

She reached out to the Tulalip Tribes. Since 2014, the Tulalip Beaver Project has relocated “nuisance” beavers to strategically chosen spots in the upper Snohomish watershed. Dylan Collins, assistant wildlife biologist for the Tribes, said the transplanted beavers can then serve an important purpose: restoring critical salmon habitat.

When beavers start building in spots where water flow is low due to drought or human impediments, Collins said, the dams that caused problems in the beavers’ former homes help to create the clear, cold streams needed for salmon to thrive. A 2019 study showed each beaver relocated by the Tulalip project created about 2,600 square feet of surface water storage.

“It really comes down to the system that we are living in,” Collins said. “Salmon and beavers have coexisted for thousands of years, and dams in those natural systems rarely impede salmon migration, but that isn’t always the case in human-created systems.”

Hmm okay. Well. First of all BEAVERS DON’T LIVE IN THE DAM. Excuse me for that. I feel better. Just had to get that off my chest before I could even read your interesting proposal that Human infrastructure + beaver infrastructure = bad salmon populations.

I guess it’s impractical to move the humans.

Collins said the majority of removals performed by the project are in urban or suburban areas where beavers have set up shop in ditches or streams. These steep-sided, shallow waterways aren’t like the rivers where the critters might normally build a dam. Collins said dams here can be up to 7 feet tall and have almost no water passing under them, creating an “unnatural” blockage for fish and, often, flooding in their human neighbors’ yards and homes.

This wasn’t the case for the dams causing trouble at Twin Lakes — the beavers had just picked a rather inconvenient spot. Regardless, the Navy needed to send them packing.

Do you ever run into someone who tells you how bad things can get and warns you not to do X or Y or leave your trash cans in the street or whatever because the REALLY BAD THING will happen and then says quietly, well sure it didn’t happen THIS TIME but that’s just because you were lucky!!!

So urban beaver dams can reach seven feet high and ruin things for salmon, but not here. This time they’re just bothering the navy. And that isn’t allowed, ma’am.

This was the shocker though.

But just because one beaver family is out of the picture doesn’t mean another can’t move in and take their place, Higgs said.

The naval station is now working with Beavers Northwest, a Western Washington-based conservation group, to make sure future dams don’t wreak the same havoc. They’ll install devices, aptly known as “beaver deceivers,” to allow water to flow through a dam without its builders ever noticing the difference.

Collins said the Tulalip Beaver Project encourages anyone dealing with pesky beaver neighbors to reach out to the project. The team doesn’t charge for their services, and chances are the dispute can be resolved to everyone’s liking.

So you’re taking this family away and dismantling the dam. But then hiring beavers northwest to put in a deceiver? How on EARTH can you install a flow device BEFORE you know where the beavers are going to build their dam? And why on earth would you want too? If you wanted to fix the problem and keep future beavers away you should have called beavers northwest and did it THIS TIME.

I am so confused.