Category: Beaver Book

ANOTHER BEN-TERVIEW FOR BEAVERS

heidi08 Beaver Book September 26, 2018

Raise you hand if you remember “Share and Tell” from preschool. One of our annual benefactors – the Martinez Kiwanis club – has a fine adult variation where you can pay “Bragging bucks” to have the group’s attention for a few moments while you say something about you’re proud of or grateful for – like having lunch with your grand-daughter or taking a trip to see a son get married. Then the money goes into a pool with other fees from the meeting and a winning raffle ticket collects the lot!

That’s a pretty nice way to get people to pay attention.

Last time I was at the lunchtime meeting a older man stood up and used his time to say he was “Thankful for the way I had maintained such a positive attitude in representing the beavers.” He hadn’t started out in favor of them, he was from the east coast and knew a lot about the problems they could cause, but he was happy I persisted and had brought so many people to thinking my way.

I was too embarrassed to think much about it at the time, or ask his name afterwards, but every single person there is an important community leader in town in some way, so I knew it was a big deal. Harriet Burt echoed the sentiment as well, which was very rewarding, since I knew she started out on the “no beavers” side of the argument, and she is a former mayor and on the planning commission.

Which is as good as time as any to repeat the truism I have learned over the years. All the nicest people in Martinez are in Kiwanis. Everyone else is in Rotary.

Anyway, this is all preamble to MY SHARE AND TELL, because I spent Sunday trying out a new tool for editing the website. I thought I’d experiment with Ben’s page because I wanted it to look nice. Go peek at how it turned out. Each image or title should link to the page or interview in question. You can access this in the future through the ‘library’ drop down menu or the book in the sidebar.

Isn’t it lovely? I’m working on a new “Our Story” page as well but its still a work in progress. The tool is Elementor and I’m thinking all of our pages need updating. Too bad our website pit crew of exactly one needs more fingers. Maybe the first page of every menu bar?

In the meantime there’s one more Ben-terview I want to mention, this from Derek Jensen at resistance radio. I’m getting a little jaded as an audience but honestly, I thought these were the BEST question! This of course made Ben think more about his answers. Very curious and respectful about the beavers themselves, which I’m always a sucker for. It’s long but I think there are parts of it that are different from anything else you’ll hear.

And it’s all about beavers, need I say more?

ON THE RADIO WITH BYU

heidi08 Beaver Book, City Reports September 25, 2018

Shortly after my article appeared in the Center for Humans and Nature website I was contacted by a producer for BYU radio. She wanted to set up a interview and to talk about beavers and our story. The plan was to start with Ben Goldfarb’s awesome new book and then transition to Martinez.

I thought that sounded like a great plan.

Host Marcus Smith was just launching a new program, so it took a while to air. But the producer let me know yesterday that it was on the air. Just four days after my birthday. The show description says “Join host Marcus Smith for conversations that invite you to slow down, step back, and take notice of the remarkable people and ideas you might normally pass by. New episodes weekdays at 4pm Eastern.”

Well, okay then.

Marcus is an author, speaker and very carefully nuanced interviewer. (He asked me how to pronounce my last name, which no one ever has in 53 years.) Even if you’ve listened to all of Ben’s interviews before you’ll learn something new. And my part? Well, usually I listen to myself with roaring criticism. “Well you sure blew that line” or “You sound like you have a cold”. But either I’ve suddenly grown less critical or I knocked this one out of the park. Because, to be perfectly honest. I think I sound pretty compelling.

Ben Goldfarb & Heidi Perryman: Beaver Believers

TELLING THE RIGHT BEAVER STORY

heidi08 Beaver Book, Environmental September 23, 2018

A red-banner day for beavers and Ben Goldfarb came with yesterday’s interview on PRI, which means it aired on public radio stations in roughly 50 states. I am SO happy that ben’s fame continues to unfold in ways that benefit the cause, (although, to be honest, if he never answered another question on squeezing a beavers anal glands it would still be too soon for me).

‘Beaver Believers’ say dam-building creatures can make the American West lush again

Beavers, the largest rodents in North America, are sometimes seen as pests. But a growing cohort of self-styled “Beaver Believers” is celebrating the dam-building creatures as a keystone species on which entire freshwater ecosystems depend.

In his 2018 book, “Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter,” author Ben Goldfarb examines the history, ecology and physiology of beavers — and describes why some landowners are welcoming beavers to help store water and revitalize streams in the increasingly arid American West.

So, what does it mean to be a “Beaver Believer?”

“The Beaver Believers are a tribe of scientists, land managers, farmers and ranchers — really anyone — who believes that restoring these incredible little ecosystem engineers can help us deal with all kinds of environmental problems,” Goldfarb says. “The Beaver Believers are people like me who have come to recognize that this is an incredibly important animal that we should cooperate with in landscape restoration.”

And child psychologist! You forgot to mention child psychologists. I hear some of them are beaver believers. Ahem.

When beavers build their dams, they create ponds and wetlands; they help store water for farms and ranches; they help filter out water pollution, which improves water quality; they create habitat for many kinds of fish and wildlife that we care about; they slow down floods; and their ponds can act as fire breaks.

Beavers might even be able to help humans cope with some of the consequences of climate change — wildfires, heat waves and drought. Goldfarb describes, for example, a pond he visited in the Methow Valley in Washington State.

“The Methow is a very dry place that has been hammered with fire in the last several years,” he says.

At this particular pond, one side had been totally scorched and the other side remained green.

“It was clear the fire had hit the pond and basically hadn’t proceeded any further,” Goldfarb says. But, he adds, “the ability of beavers to act as firebreaks is one of those things that hasn’t really been quantified in any kind of meaningful way.”

Ya think?

I like to imagine those radios all across the country in kitchens or in cars tuning in for beaver benefits, This is what I hoped for with Glynnis’ book, or with Frances’ book. Or with the great work out of NOAA or Utah. But it took the right kind of message and the right kind of reception. Thanks Ben for letting us watch this unfold.

Beavers deserve this.

Mean while yesterday our wildlife friends in England were part of a dynamic “Peoples’ Walk for Wildlife” and I thought you want to see some photos. This is Derek Gow from Devon with one of my favorite signs and below are a bunch of his photos of the day I snagged off his facebook feed. Thousands of people turned up to march on Whitehall, which is basically government central in London. Most of them carried signs or wore wonderful costumes. Here is an article in the Guardian in case you want to read all about it. Click on any photo for a larger view or to scroll through them all.

Thousands march on Whitehall to call for end to ‘war on wildlife’

THE SINCEREST FORM OF FLATTERY

heidi08 Beaver Book, Beavers and climate change September 22, 2018

Wanna get Heidi Perryman’s attention?
Headline an article about beavers with the title: “WORTH A DAM”
That should do it.

Worth a Dam

The earth is warming. Weather trends are changing. Some say it is nature’s way. Many believe we humans have nothing to do with it. Most scientists say otherwise. Whatever you believe, it’s hard to negate that a warming trend is upon us and our planet is changing faster than ever in recorded history. Here in the White Mountains, snowfall has been scant, and two historically large fires have plagued us of late.

While we humans are pondering the problem, other species on our planet are doing their best to counteract these changes. Both ocean and mountain environments each have at least one wild creature who is working to mitigate the effects of a warming planet. In the oceans, whales are helping to save us, and on the mountain it just might be the beaver who does the most to counter our drought conditions.

What many of us might not realize, is how the return of the beaver benefits us right here in our own surroundings. This fascinating creature may be our saving grace as our planet warms. Other than Homo sapiens, the American beaver does the most to make changes in its habitat. Perhaps it is this amazing animal who does more than its share to enhance our world with a work ethic that puts many of us to shame. You might not see much action from them in the daytime, but at night? Well, they are definitely busy beavers.

It is now thought that the presence of beavers on our lakes and streams could be part of an answer to the effects of global warming. We can be ever so thankful to those forward-thinking law makers and voters who passed laws to protect them, because now we have had a chance to study them and learn some amazing things from the largest rodent in North America. Votes do matter.

When beavers build a dam, they create a pond for themselves which serves many other life forms. When water backs up behind the dam, it not only creates a deeper body of water, but also spreads the flow, creating wetlands where a diverse number of plants flourish in the shallow rich silty soil. Aquatic life abounds, and birds, reptiles, and larger animals feed in the rich environment. Wetlands only cover about 2 percent of our forest, but support about 80% of our wildlife. Additionally, a marshland filters water and is one of Mother Nature’s purification systems. We can thank the beaver in many cases for our fresh water.

Ahhh a nice description of beaver benefits all the way from the white mountains in Arizona. Hmm, I wonder what got you thinking about this anyway? I mean did you wake up this morning liking beavers and dreaming up our 11 year-old name or was there something else?

These incredible engineers build new dams along mountain streams, create ponds, and keep streams wet all year long. As proclaimed by Ben Goldfarb in his book, Eager Beavers Matter, “beavers function as a climate adaptation strategy, compensating for the loss of snowpack and glacial melt.”

Ah HA! I know what you’ve been reading! Okay so chapter 6 either got your attention or slipped subliminally into your brain, I guess its nice to know you like it. We like it too. I’m not sure how I feel about you borrowing it. I guess the best part of being in a book is that it’s official that at least we thought of it first.

How can we repay the beaver? Perhaps one simple contribution from those of us who live in the White Mountains is to recognize the value of these amazing mammals. It seems to me that they are certainly worth a dam.

Ya ya ya. We know it’s a clever pun. It’s brilliant! The worst part is that her editor probably thinks she’s a fricking genius for thinking of that pun. Maybe she’ll even get a raise. Or a new job offer. Or maybe she’ll finally get the attention of a neighbor who never believed her before. And it will be good for beavers in Arizona. Which is the point, Heidi.

And we will always know the truth, right?

WY THE HECK NOT?

heidi08 Beaver Book, Beavers September 20, 2018

It’s time for some more good news on Ben Goldfarb sprinkling his book over the countryside, don’t you think? This time in Wyoming because WY the heck not?

‘Eager’ author coming to talk beavers

Today most Americans never see a beaver. If they do it will be the stump of an expensive ornamental tree in their yard that alerts them. They’ll call a professional trapper — it falls into the category of pest control — and consider the problem solved. For many beavers being trapped is the same as being killed. Those who receive more humane treatment find themselves dumped someplace where it’s thought they will build a new life, or at least a life out of suburban neighborhood.

This happens around here. Goldfarb’s book begins with a segment about Drew Reed, a trapper who transplants his caught beavers up the Gros Ventre River drainage. Goldfarb compares the reaction of the two beavers being trapped, held in a horse trailer and then tossed out in a strange place to a science fiction abduction, “like being snatched by aliens from your bed in Sacramento, spending a day in isolation aboard a mysterious mothership and then being dumped unceremoniously into a cornfield in Topeka.”

Isn’t it wonderful to see local heroes featured around the nation? Much needed beaver wisdom in Wyoming from one of their own! You would think the SF chronicle would get around to doing a snippet on our Martinez story wouldn’t you? But apparently beavers and their solutions to drought and climate change are beneath them.

No, I’m not bitter. it’s my birthday so I’m trying out a new gallery toy. Isn’t it cool?

Today the Western states are the focus of “beaver believers,” people who hope to see the populations restored. It’s an area where water is often scarce and damming beavers restore and expand fertile land and wildlife habitat. It’s also a place where there’s enough public land and large ranches to accommodate the rodents without bothering neighbors.

Goldfarb’s book is a fine introduction to the creatures, to the reasons they nearly disappeared and why their return should be encouraged. He’ll be at Teton County Library next week to talk and sign books.

Hurray for Jackson Hole! And hurray for Ben Goldfarb spreading the beaver gospel all across this thirsty nation. I hope you can see the huge difference you are making to the beaver conversation at every venue.