Sometimes it’s good to start the week with a bang. And here’s some bang for your beaver buck.

Nature’s ecological heroes

 

Smoky the Bear is probably the best-known animal firefighter, but the North American beaver is the one doing the heavy lifting.

In the 1960’s, Smoky the Bear sternly warned us to prevent forest fires. Recent research suggests that the activities of another forest-dwelling mammal — the North American beaver — can help reduce the damage of wildfires in ecologically sound ways.

A study by Emily Fairfax, an ecohydrologist at the University of Minnesota, showed that the benefits of beavers go further that just providing patches of water from their dams.

Using remote sensing imagery, she charted both the health and density of foliage in areas with and without beaver dams during wildfires.

Beaver ponds provided enough water to turn areas with flammable plants that would otherwise have burned, into green refuges for wildlife and livestock. And those ponds also captured the ash and rubble that run off hillslopes, shielding downstream fish and drinking water from harmful debris.

Indigenous groups have long recognized fire as a regenerative, rather than destructive, force. But the current megafires of our drought-ridden West, stoked by climate change, burn with greater intensity and cover than in the past, so sound fire management is more important than ever.

Happily, beaver populations have rebounded to a level of more than 10 million in North America. Their roles in increasing fire resistance and providing wildlife refuge is make them ecological heroes in our climate changing world. So, let’s tip our hats to Smoky the Beaver.