GOOD BEAVER NEWS COMES IN THREES

Yesterday I was proud to ‘grandfather’ another beaver celebration into the world. So I made a little housewarming gift for our friends at the Methow project. I like the way it came out.

Now there’s a great NCPR interview I’ve been just dying to share.

Chewing over three books about beavers

Aug 14, 2019 — Traveling around the North Country it is easy to see the work of beavers – dams and ponds and sometimes flooded roads. Are these clever rodents a nuisance or a benefit to our landscape? Todd Moe talked with Betsy Kepes after she read three books about Castor Canadenis, the North American beaver.

It’s a fun interview, and its wonderful to read that someone else cried when the matriarch died in Lily Pond. We were driving home from the mountains 6 months after mom beaver died and I wept so much we had to pull over. Hope really touched a lot of people, didn’t she?

Now lets go back to Washington state and K5 news where some beavers are being reintroduced after showing up in the wrong culvert. I admit, it isn’t often I like everything I see about a beaver relocation undertaking, but this seems pretty smooth.

Beavers in King County trapped, relocated to help salmon habitat

EAGER FOR BEAVERS IN JULY

heidi08 Attitudes towards beavers, Beaver Book July 21, 2019

I don’t know why exactly, but July seems to be the month the few straggling holdouts left are getting around to reading “Eager: The Secret Surprising Lives of Beaver and why they Matter.” It works for me. July is a good month for beavers as you know. Their new kits are visible and easy to spot. Plus old enough that they get to spend lots of time on their own without parents to cramp their emerging styles. I always loved July for just this reason. (Until that one horribleJuly which shall remain nameless.)

Well. get ready for more “Good July’s”.

Northwest Passages Book Club: Wiley Miller of Non Sequitur, Summer Series authors and Ben Goldfarb’s ‘Eager’ beavers

The club’s selection for September was indeed one of the titles I would never have picked up on my own: “Eager: The Surprising Secret Lives of Beavers and Why They Matter” by Ben Goldfarb. What surprised me was how quickly I was engrossed in this book. Beaver dams were important to managing flooding? Weren’t those pesky creatures responsible for the flooding?

Well, not exactly. Through Goldfarb’s engaging, easy-to-read storytelling, I found many things about this creature that I misunderstood. I was schooled in how beavers are a critical solution when it comes to drought relief and flood control. It is difficult not to become a “beaver believer” while reading this book.

No it is not. And that’s why we love it. Thank you for being the next fan to jump on this crowded bandwagon.

The person who recommended that I read “Eager,” The Spokesman-Review’s outdoors editor Eli Francovich, will lead the conversation with Goldfarb on Sept. 18 at Montvale Event Center. The VIP reception includes a copy of the book, drink ticket, reserved seating, meeting the author and starts at 6 p.m., followed by the event at 7.

Wanna go? Me too. There’s a lot of Washington events I’d like to attend in July. Including the KUOW discussion of its book of the month.

Eager reader? Join ‘The Wild’ Book Club!

We heard from so many of our listeners that our episode on beavers was one of their favorites, so we decided to take it to the next level. Introducing: The Wild Book Club!

In the month of July, we’ll be reading “Eager: The Surprising, Secret Lives of Beavers and Why They Matter,” by Ben Goldfarb, who we featured on our episode.

Read or listen to the book this month.
Send us your questions or comments: Instagram (@thewildpod) | Facebook (The Wild podcast) | Online form
Join us for an online meeting of the club with author Ben Goldfarb the last week of July (details coming soon!).

Well isn’t that fun! As if there weren’t enough reasons to like public radio, this month there are readers just carrying around Ben’s book and thinking about beavers. I can’t wait until all those NPR listeners get to ask their questions and think aloud with the author!

I think I’ll send in mine right now. Hmm, “Is that town you mentioned in California really so excited about beavers? And is that crazy woman still doing a festival?”

Or maybe you’re a more private person for who reading isn’t a group activity. There are still plenty of reasons to rejoice. Like this article from Susan’s Inklings at the site “Today I’d like to sit and Read” It seems Susan has some beavers of her own to keep an eye on, so was very motivated to do her homework.

We’ve been watching beavers on the pond at home. For months they have been chewing our cottonwoods. They’ve significantly damaged many and taken some big trees down, expertly placing them in the middle of the pond for nibbling each evening on leaves and bark. My husband and our neighbors have spent many mornings unplugging the outflow that they clog each night with branches and mud. Once they heard the water running freely again, they busied themselves, like beavers, and stopped up the flow.

Believe it or not. There is a new and complete book about beavers and their behavior and this is how it fits into my beaver story. Ben Goldfarb, the author of Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter was brought to Yakima Valley College in collaboration with the Cowiche Canyon Conservancy in mid-March, 2019 to present for the Winter Biology Lecture Series. My husband and I decided to attend. Mr. Goldfarb, an environmental journalist, regaled us with fascinating facts and photos about beavers. I spoke with him after the lecture and he gave me several avenues to pursue for help relocating our furry friends. We left the lecture admiring these creatures even more than before and began pursuing the author’s leads.

Susan, meet Ben. Ben, this is Susan. How fortuitous! I’m sure you’ll have LOTS to talk about!

While the first several organizations did not pan out, Ben continued to email us and make suggestions. He gave us a promising lead with Trout Unlimited in Leavenworth. When we communicated our dilemma to Cody, the project manager for Trout Unlimited in the Wenatchee area, he heard our plea and started the ball rolling to help us, including getting special permits to move The Cleavers to a new locale. In the meantime, Jim and I could almost set our watch for Leave it to Beaver every evening around dusk. Better than TV.

Ahh so Ben connected her with the SEP squad from yesterday’s post but before she sent them packing she says they enjoyed watching them in the evenings. Better than TV. They can’t live here, but in the mean time they amuse me a little. Ahem. Mighty white of her.

On the afternoon of June 10th, three interns with Trout Unlimited met me at the house to scope out the situation. Tessa, Serena and Kate were well-prepared and determined to give this story a happy ending. They sized-up the situation, found a suitable new home within the Yakima River Basin, set up two live-traps that we could see from the house and settled in for the night. Early the next morning they found the smallest beaver in a trap. They graciously let me “help” them put it in a cage for transport and they took off to their pre-determined site for release. Early that same evening, they reset the traps and within a very short time, another huge beaver was caught. I was so impressed with their humane methods and care for the creatures and equally impressed with the calm demeanor of these fascinating creatures now detained and surely confused.

Oh okay, relocating beavers is generally better than killing them. I agree with that. But she still has a nice luscious ponds surrounded by cottonwood trees and how much do you bet some new beavers are going to move in?

Is there a book about that? Why it’s better to solve your problem than to relocate it? Start writing one now, Ben.

THIS JUST IN: BEAVERS DO NOT EAT FISH

heidi08 Beaver Book June 6, 2019

Well, well, well. Author Ben Goldfarb is making waves in the UK. This morning he headlines the Belfast Telegraph who wrote about his presentation in Wales. The CS Lewis thing seems to be hitting people kinda hard.

CS Lewis misled public over diet of beavers, says writer

An environmental journalist has blamed the Belfast-born author of the Chronicles of Narnia tales for anglers’ opposition to re-introducing beavers to the UK

Speaking at this year’s Hay Festival in Wales, Ben Goldfarb – author of Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter – criticised CS Lewis for giving the misleading impression that beavers eat fish.

Fish-eating Mr and Mrs Beaver are key characters in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Mr Goldfarb said that the impression given to generations of fans had led to real world consequences in attitudes towards the beaver.

The reintroduction of the species is opposed by many anglers who fear they will eat the supply of fish. Mr Goldfarb said Lewis “totally blew that one” after noting that beavers did not eat fish.

“He said: They’re totally herbivorous. That’s one of the funny things about beaver reproduction in the UK: every British schoolchild reads Narnia and they grow up thinking that beavers are going to eat all the fish. That is biologically inaccurate.

“They have a few species of tree that they most like – that’s willow and the whole poplar family – birch, aspen, cottonwood”.

I don’t know how serious this is. I mean would America be upset if we found that Orb-weaving spiders can’t spell? Or that lions don’t lead revolutions? The country hadn’t seen a single beaver in nearly 5 centuries. Of course some creative soul is going to make things up about them. I mean for crying out loud an American paper once published that they lived on the moon, walked on their hind legs and discovered fire for pete’s sake. Popular science published an account of them making the canals on Mars.

Eating fish is small potatoes by comparison.

The Daily Mail had a more contextual look:

Environmentalist BLASTS C.S. Lewis’s ‘Chronicles Of Narnia’ For ‘Miseducating’ The Public About Beavers

The beavers themselves not only fish — wThe beavers themselves not only fish — which, apparently, real beavers do not do — they fish with human fishing implements, cut holes in the ice to ice fish, and decorate the inside of their dams with fishing accoutrement. They also cook over a hot stove, serve dinner on plates, eat with flatware, wear clothes, and talk. If there are lingering concerns about what people might learn about beavers from the works of C.S. Lewis, it seems “they eat fish” is the least of anyone’s worries.hich, apparently, real beavers do not do — they fish with human fishing implements, cut holes in the ice to ice fish, and decorate the inside of their dams with fishing accoutrement. They also cook over a hot stove, serve dinner on plates, eat with flatware, wear clothes, and talk. If there are lingering concerns about what people might learn about beavers from the works of C.S. Lewis, it seems “they eat fish” is the least of anyone’s worries.

I have to say I agree, I hope they paid as much attention to the other things Ben said. Ahem.

Now if you wanted a real beaver bedtime story, I would recommend this heart-melting series of moments. Apparently instinct can not be ignored.

Furniture be dammed.

EXCITING BEAVER TIMES

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beaver Book, Beavers, Festival June 4, 2019

These are exciting times in the beaver-verse. Ben Goldfarb addressed the Exeter University panel of 400 people gathered for the three day beaver conference. Derek Gow posted a 360 shot of the impatient crowd last night, and the Times is running an article this morning.

I wish I knew how to embed it but here’s the link so you can go see for yourself – it’s cool to look around the room and see them hanging from the rafters to hear about beavers, but try this link

A FULL HOUSE

I hope we get some rumors soon about how its all going and you can be sure I’ll pass them along.It’s what I do. The Times article is behind a firewall and I’m too cheap to be able to share, but here’s a taste of what we’re missing.

How CS Lewis gave beavers a bad press

David Sanderson, Arts Correspondent

June 3 2019, 12:01am, The Times

If only CS Lewis had not had Mr Beaver sitting at a hole in the ice until he had “whisked out a beautiful trout”.

The author of The Chronicles of Narnia has been lambasted for giving generations of schoolchildren the misleading impression that beavers are pescatarians.

The writer Ben Goldfarb said that it had directly led to widespread opposition to the reintroduction of the species in Britain, including among anglers, who he said had been “miseducated by CS Lewis”.

Instead of blaming Mr. Lewis how about naming the thousands of trappers that hunted beaver to extinction on every corner of the UK and Europe so that the Brits spent 400 years not knowing the animal or knowing what they ate?

In other exciting news the beaver festival made the cover of the June Diablo Gazette, which of course we are very happy about. Amy’s photo is so inviting I’m tempted to be there myself!
Such a great photo! Her husband really captured just the right image don’t you think?

CASTOROPOLIS

heidi08 Beaver Book, Beavers May 21, 2019

I know it doesn’t feel like Christmas morning, but our favorite author Ben Goldfarb just got back from a field trip to beaver-topia and you’re going to feel like you’re opening all the best presents when you see what he found there. Let’s let him tell you about it. Here’s what he posted on the beaver management facebook forum.

A few pics from my pilgrimage to Voyageurs National Park last week, where the beaver populations are dense and the dams are epic. Highly recommend this place to every Beaver Believer — it’s a powerful testament to what our favorite rodents are capable of unfettered, and, perhaps, a window into pre-colonial landscapes. Some of the castorid architecture truly boggles the mind.

just Save imagine what North America would look like if we hadn’t hat-hunted all the beavers. It’s stunning to consider what the landscape might have been; layered with cascading habitat worked and maintained for centuries – always water where you wanted it and very rarely where you didn’t. Once upon a time there was an entire continent built to lovingly cradle and release water like some kind of giant and wildly maintained beaver-Tivoli.