Category: Beaver-themed merchandise

These are unusual beaver-themed designed merchandise we like. Some of the items have been donated to Worth A Dam, and some we just hope they will be soon.

Sometimes the prophet IS accepted in his own country.

heidi08 Beaver-themed merchandise, Beavers, Beavers and climate change, Beavers and water, Who's saving beavers now? January 24, 2016

Luke 4:24 (KJV) And he said , Verily I say unto you , No prophet is accepted in his own country.

Unless that country is the Methow valley and the prophet is Kent Woodruff. After a mere 9 years his good work is finally making local headlines.

Beavers may be part of answer to climate change

Can a rodent species native to the Methow Valley help solve problems created by climate change? Absolutely, according to a local biologist who leads the Methow Beaver Project.

Beavers, the animal kingdom’s version of the Army Corps of Engineers, build dams that store water in mountain streams. And that could help mitigate the impacts of diminishing winter snowpacks and warmer temperatures that are anticipated as a result of climate change, said Kent Woodruff.

The Methow Beaver Project, now in its ninth year, relocates beavers to tributaries in the upper reaches of the Methow watershed. The goal is to restore beavers to their historical habitat and allow them to do what comes naturally — build dams and create ponds that store water both above and below ground.

Water held in those storage basins is released gradually throughout the warm months when it is needed for fish, wildlife and irrigation. That slow release has the added benefit of keeping water in tributaries cooler, which enhances habitat for fish and other creatures, said Woodruff, a biologist with the U.S. Forest Service.

Climate change models predict dramatically lower snowpacks in the future. As humans consider ways to adapt to the changes resulting from a warming climate, beavers have some lessons to offer, according to Woodruff.

“One of the things I’m excited about is the Beaver Project provides an example and inspiration for climate adaptation,” he said.

Hurray for Methow! And Kent Woodruff of the USFS! He has been doing God’s beaver work with a broader cast of supporters than I ever thought possible. I had no idea the project was only as old as Martinez. When I went to the first beaver conference ages ago I thought they all were the wise old elders, and I was the upstart. One of their many interns was presenting their work at the time, and his equipment wasn’t working, so I loaned him mine. That’s how I got this special thank you, which is among one of my favorite treasures.

Go read the whole article and smile knowingly at how equivocating the head line is, Beavers MAY be PART of the answer? Could they possibly demonstrate less belief in your subject matter? Never mind, you were eventually forced against your will to write about the essential work being done in your own front yard, and maybe you’ve learned something. Congratulations!

More good news yesterday from beaver legends. I heard from Dietland Muller-Swarze that he will donate two copies of he seminal and important work for the silent auction. Thank you!

We were in contact years ago and he said he was impressed to see what Martinez had done, but after he retired I worried I might lose contact forever. I just know his books will be a big hit at the auction!

And another chapter of monumental good news comes from the SF based legendary artist Jeremy Fish.

To celebrate 100 years of San Francisco City Hall, the San Francisco Arts Commission has commissioned 100 drawings by internationally renowned local artist Jeremy Fish. To prepare for the exhibition, titled O Glorious City, Jeremy Fish will be the first ever Artist in Residence at San Francisco City Hall!

Jeremy is one of those very rare artists who make an enviously successful living at his craft. Here’s the work that prompted me to boldly write. It’s titled fittingly titled, “The Belly of the Beaver“. I wrote that I couldn’t decide whether the image was ‘joyful or haunting’ but I couldn’t stop looking at it. Apparently that was exactly the right thing to say because a signed limited print, is coming our way. Yesterday he wrote back saying that he would be only too happy to donate and maybe come to the festival with his wife and support our beavers in person! I can’t help wondering how he and FRO might get along and what they could dream up with the help of 100 other eager child artists?

Thankful for the little things!

heidi08 Beaver-themed merchandise, Beavers January 23, 2016

Buttons! Buttons! Buttons!

For the past 6 months I’ve been limping along with a wordpress that suddenly stopped doing everything It reliably did. And I’ve had to use html code commands to access even the simplest functions. (Which I’m sure is fine if you have that kind of brain, but not if you’re ME, with this kind of brain.) I can never tell where the <marks go and which way the / is facing. I’m soooooooooooo happy not to look like this anymore.

My new dashboard does even MORE things than my old one! Complete with drop down menus and acres of choices – including emoticons! I can’t wait to try them all out! There’s even the hugely dangerous “Insert read more tag” which is a button I can only caution you from ever pushing.

The one thing I lost and have to try and replace is the “Like button” for facebook. Hmm I will hunt around for the right fix. In the meantime, let’s just admire the view!

Two wonderful surprises yesterday in my begging excavations. One was the generous response from Summer ties who said they love beavers and would be happy to send a couple of these my way. (I can’t tell you wistfully admiring Ian Timothy was to see such a bowtie of beavers! When I mentioned they donated to the auction he thought maybe this was the year he’d have to come to the festival!)

The second find is even rarer. It’s the usual historic image of a beaver who’s implausibly bitten off his own testicles to discourage the hunter, but look at his FACE. This must be the very rare puma beaver! I’m thinking that we spend a lot of time praising the naturalists of the 1800’s for admiring and understanding wildlife – but you’d think an artist of any worth could tell the difference between a mountain lion and a beaver?

A noble attempt – And a funny surprise for the educated.

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beaver-themed merchandise, Beavers, pictures January 22, 2016

WKBT channel 8 in LaCrosse Wisconsin wants you to appreciate the Myrick Park marsh trail in winter. Click on the image to go see how much. If you stay all the way through there’s a cheerful surprise at the end. If it doesn’t make you laugh out loud, think of it as a quiz.

The Marsh in Winter

Did you see it? No telling. Shh. Crazy that you’re allowed to trap 50 feet from the tail there, better be careful if you’re taking your dog for a walk. I knew there was a reason we lived in California. But do you think every time we see the ‘wildlife viewing area’ sign it means wildlife trapping area too?

I had fun begging for beaver necklaces yesterday and got two immediate positive responses. I’m gun shy about using Etsy so I’m saving it for later. (If you’ll remember they suspended my account last year because I was too effective.) Aren’t these lovely?

First, from Esther at “Winterchild jewelry” this lovely image which can be on necklaces or earrings.

She writes about the beaver:
Beavers are animals I have a lot of respect for. I admire their remarkable work ethic, their ability to actually construct dams and lodges and especially their tightly knit family unit. I’m sure you’ll agree that the seconds between catching sight of a beaver and hearing the sharp slap of its tail on the water is truly delightful!

Thanks Esther Winter for your generosity and talent! Follow the links to see her other fine work.

Next it’s a pewter beaver birth totem from Laura Johnston at Le animale.

Carry le industrious beaver with you and build your dreams into a reality.

Of course everyone knows that beaver make dreams come true, so that seems very sound advice! Go check out her many spirit animals here and thank you Laura for your generosity!

Let me know if you see anything covetous out there and I’ll do my best to add it to the auction!

Are we surprised?

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beaver-themed merchandise, Beavers and water, City Reports, Creative Solutions, Who's saving beavers now? January 21, 2016

Here’s some fun new research out of Poland on beaver influences in streams.

Beaver ponds’ impact on fluvial processes (Beskid Niski Mts., SE Poland)

-Beavers came back to the Carpathian rivers after an over three hundred year absence.
-Beavers’ dam cascade system changed fluvial erosion, transport and sedimentation.
-Beaver activity changed the headwater valley morphology.
-Beaver damming and ponding affect fluvial systems in montane regions.

Abstract

A. Giriata, Elżbieta Gorczycab, Mateusz Sobuckib,

Beaver (Castor sp.) can change the riverine environment through dam-building and other activities. The European beaver (Castor fiber) was extirpated in Poland by the

nineteenth century, but populations are again present as a result of reintroductions that began in 1974. The goal of this paper is to assess the impact of beaver activity on montane fluvial system development by identifying and analysing changes in channel and valley morphology following expansion of beaver into a 7.5 km-long headwater reach of the upper Wisłoka River in southeast Poland.

Two types of beaver dams were noted: in-channel dams and valley-wide dams. The primary effect of dams, investigated in an intensively studied 300-m long subreach (Radocyna Pond), was a change in the longitudinal profile from smooth to stepped, a local reduction of the water surface slope, and an increase in the variability of both the thalweg profile and surface water depths. We estimate the current rate of sedimentation in beaver ponds to be about 14 cm per year. A three-stage scheme of fluvial processes in the longitudinal and transverse profile of the river channel is proposed. C. fiber reintroduction may be considered as another important stage of the upper Wisłoka fluvial system development.

Why does this even matter? Because it means beavers are changing the amount of silt that rivers release whether they have the luxury of expanding into a valley meadow, or whether we’re just talking about a series of dams in a narrow channel, like we had in Martinez. And if you’re not sure that matters check how unhappy Lake Tahoe is about filling up with silt, or how much money cities spend on silt removal.

Remember though this is Castor Fiber, so not our kind of beaver. And people will say we need to study more to learn whether this research applies in America, or Canada or other European countries like Germany, or Amsterdam, or to left handed beavers or beavers that work under full moon. But you get the idea.

Of course this comes as no surprise to us, but it gives me another fine opportunity to post a favorite clip.

I just found something really fun and had to share. How cool would it be to put Mark Poulin’s bright images on these blocks and invite children to make the arch of a healthy creek themselves. And then challenge them to make that same arch WITHOUT THE KEYSTONE.

I found the blocks on a mormon teaching page, (because the use the keystone concept).Then I bought my own set here. I just Mark asked for permission and we can use other images if we need to. If all goes well it could be on the table at Earth day. It would make a dynamic and interactive project that’s really colorful and inviting. You know, Something like this….

Water, water everywhere. (Napa version)

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beaver-themed merchandise, Beavers, Beavers and water, City Reports, Creative Solutions, Environmental, Who's saving beavers now? January 20, 2016

You think you’re sick of all this rain, imagine how the beavers feel. In Napa the Tulocay creek beavers have been dealing with the deluge as best they can. It’s true, they aren’t in danger of drowning, but lord knows it’s not convenient when your office and home are suddenly under water in the middle of a sound sleep. At least they have two defenders looking out for them. Thanks Robin Ellison and Rusty Cohn for sending this my way.

Here’s Robin’s footage of what the dam looked like at noon yesterday.

It didn’t take long until that entire beautiful lodge was underwater. Which means the beavers inside got a rude awakening and had to scramble to dry ground to finish their hard earned sleep. I almost felt relieved for the first time that we didn’t have our own beavers to worry about. Almost. Rusty snapped this around the same time.

If you’ve ever had one of those crazy late nights where you slept on TOP of your covers, you know how these beavers were feeling. Just like folks climbed onto their rooftops during Katrina, beavers wisely climbed to up their lodge to escape the flooding. I wonder if the parents leave the dry lodge top for the kits to use, and negotiate the bank themselves? Check out this bit of heroism Rusty filmed moments later.

After a day of hard work and calamity there is really only one thing to be done:

finallydrying — Beaver kit sleeping on lodge: Rusty Cohn

Stay dry beavers and beaver-watchers! The sun has to come soon.

More good news yesterday from Dana Zambrano of CrochemecrayZ in Rochelle, NY. When I saw her work I knew it would make the perfect christmas gift. Later when I saw how delightful the actual work was I didn’t hesitate to boldly beaverbeg for the silent auction. She was kind enough to agree, and might even be inspired try a beaver kit set. Ooh! Here let me show you what I’m talking about. (And yes, that’s my grandniece, and in case you’re wondering, she’s a genius.)