Man vs. Nature
The outdoors can be a bit hard to tame — but for restoration ecologist Joe Cannon, that’s part of why it’s worth preserving
That’s where Joe Cannon, restoration ecologist for the Lands Council’s beaver program, comes in. It’s his job to be an advocate, of sorts, for beavers — to show that, as irritating and destructive as nature can be, it’s worth protecting.
When beavers chew up a farmer’s orchard trees or wreak havoc on local infrastructure, Cannon meets with the landowners to try to find a solution. That may mean wrapping fencing around certain trees or running pipes through the beaver dam in order to shift the flow of a river.
About a third of the time, when beavers are too much of a nuisance, he traps them, brings them home and keeps them in his backyard, until he can trap the rest of the family. Then he and other volunteers transfer the whole beaver clan up to the Colville National Forest.
Ideally, though, his advocacy pays off. He’s able to convince the farmers and homeowners that beavers play a starring role in the local ecology. “These conversations are really important to have when someone is losing thousands of dollars in property,” Cannon says.
Joe Cannon of the Lands Council has earned this lovely article which emphasizes solutions, beaver benefits, and nature being natural. The Lands Council has been a beacon on the hill to beavers supporters for more years than I can count. Joe started out as an intern through Americorp for them, and it transitioned into a career. With them he has helped make national news, creative legislation, and ground-breaking policy with neighbor-to-neighbor level interventions. And they made this, which remains one of the most awesome things you’ll ever see.
Joe and Amanda came to Martinez to see our beavers in 2011. We had dinner, talked beavers and did a post mortem on that year’s festival. Then we went down and watched the beavers in person. They were both amazed at how closely and easily they could be observed. The next week there was a huge article about their work in the Wall Street Journal!
Yes, the beaver is disruptive. But that’s why it’s valuable. It dams rivers, redirects streams, digs side channels, fells old trees. A little gnawing, and — timber! — it has altered nature’s rhythm.
“They add fish habitat, they add fish streams, cover for fish and perches for birds to hunt,” Cannon says. “When they’re taking down cottonwoods and aspens, a small forest comes up from the roots.” As beavers paw at the sediment that collects at the back of their dams, they’re spreading seeds.
Great work Joe! If you’re hungry for more here’s the interview I did with him back in 2012.
