Remember Adrian Nelson, the young man who is communications director for Fur-Bearer Defenders and recently installed a flexible leveler in Langley? I found later it was his first one and he had a long chat with beaver friend Mike Callahan before hand. Now I see he’s written a letter to the local paper, and I couldn’t be happier!
Beaver solutions
Re: They’re ‘just oversized rats’ (Letters, Dec. 6). It’s of little surprise that Glenn Lennox hadn’t seen beavers outside of the park until recently. Beaver populations in North America were once estimated to be between 60 million and 90 million, but due to heavy trapping and exploitation, those populations were reduced to as little as six million to 10 million.
It is only recently that we are seeing the populations starting to rebound. Current estimates put the population at about 10 million to 15 million, a far cry from its original numbers.
Canada has been losing its wetlands at an alarming rate, a vital habitat in which beavers are a keystone species. Many communities across North America are successfully implementing alternatives such as simple tree wrapping, beaver deceivers and pond levellers, which keep beavers in the area without the risk of flood and property damage.
In fact, hundreds of thousands of acres of land have been effectively beaver-proofed using these methods, saving the vital wetlands.The simple fact that trappers must continue to trap beavers from the same area year after year is evidence this is not a long-term solution.There is no need to cut down trees, kill beavers, or ship them somewhere else. In order to outsmart a beaver, one needs only to be smarter than the beaver.
Adrian Nelson, Winnipeg
Great letter, Adrian! I love the part about trapping being a short term solution especially! Being ‘smarter than a beaver’ is familiar in the very best way. Keep it up and let us know how the installation is working! We’d love to arrange for you to do a short ‘internship’ with Mike and Skip so that you learn all the best from the best!
