Category: Beavers and Insects

The Watch of the Wild

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beaver Chewing, Beavers and Frogs, Beavers and Insects, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, What's killing beavers now?, Who's blaming beavers now?, Who's saving beavers now? August 24, 2017

Fantastic column today from Karen Corker, the director of WildWatch in Maine. I’m guessing she attended Skip’s lectures last year in the state. Or maybe she even made them happen? Either way this is exactly the kind of writing we want to see everywhere.

Maine Voices: Beaver Deceivers allow people, nature’s engineers to go with the flow

At the end of each summer, Maine’s Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife determines the fate of thousands of beavers. August is the month the department sets the trapping season dates for beavers across Maine’s 29 wildlife management districts. Towns and private property owners may request that specific areas be closed to trapping, but the closures represent a tiny fraction of the vast territory that is open to trappers to kill beavers in Maine without limit for five to six months a year.

Approximately 10,000 beavers lose their lives each year as a result of this aggressive, expansive approach to beaver management. The number of other, non-targeted animals killed in traps set for beavers is not generally reported, but the department admits that otters are frequent victims because they share the same wetland habitats.

Now I just have to interject and say how on earth does she know that the number of beavers trapped? I’m guessing she’s citing the numbers that come from the USDA stats for Maine, but is USDA the only folks allowed to do nuisance trapping? In California APHIS is responsible for a very small fraction of beavers killed by depredation permit, which can also be used by private trappers. I assume that’s true for other states as well.

There are two primary justifications for such extensive trapping. The first is that beavers have historically been regarded as “nuisance” animals, largely because of their damming behavior. When beavers clog culverts, the channels that run under roads, it often results in the flooding of roads and other properties.

The second justification derives from the department’s embrace of trapping as a recreational activity and primary wildlife management tool. In 2015, trapping proponents persuaded IF&W’s legislative committee to rewrite Maine statute to require the department to use trapping as a key basis for managing the state’s wildlife.

Another correction based on our reviews of depredation permits, is that the vast majority of depredation permits are sought for damage to landscaping. In fact there’s even a comment to the article that mentions tree damage. There are far more landowners who own trees than culverts I guess. So it’s a more common complaint. In California the deniens of beavers killed as ‘nuisances’ dwarfs the fur trapping numbers. That may be slightly different in Maine, but I doubt it.

A rapid evolution in our understanding of beavers and their value is eroding these justifications. Beavers are a keystone species; they create ecosystems that nourish a multitude other animals and plants. The marshes and meadows they build create ecological stability. With more than a third of freshwater fish and amphibians in the U.S. either extinct or at risk of extinction, the wetlands beavers produce have unrivaled potential to reverse these accelerating losses.

Along with the evolution in understanding of beavers’ contributions to healthy habitats, high quality flow devices – Beaver Deceivers, for example – have also evolved in recent decades.

When these devices are well-designed, well-constructed, and professionally installed, they prevent flooding, keep beavers and their benefits on the landscape, and offer long-term solutions to human/beaver conflicts at significantly lower cost than road repairs and beaver trapping. When such devices are not employed at conflict sites, beavers have to be destroyed continually. This approach is not only costly, it precludes the formation of the fertile habitats that support a rich and diverse assortment of wildlife and plant life.

In short, removal by trapping is not a lasting, economical, or ecologically-smart solution; any emptied beaver habitat is soon resettled, and the never-ending cycle of conflict and killing simply begin again. IF&W is not unaware of the benefits and effectiveness of flow-devices. The department has, in fact, stepped up its promotion of non-lethal solutions to beaver/human conflict through their use.

This is obviously my FAVORITE part of the letter, and the best wording I’ve seen on the subject. Good job Karen, you hit all the right notes. And it sounds a lot like Skip so I’m assuming they know each other. The column goes on to talk about the humane concerns about trapping, but in my considered opinion THIS is the power part. Just leave out the compassion next time Karen, and go straight for the economic value. People are inherently selfish and listen closer when their pocket book is involved, I promise.

Any Maine citizen who would like to share comments or concerns about the proposed beaver trapping season can express their views at a public hearing on Aug. 29 at 6 p.m. at the Augusta Armory, Room 209B, 179 Western Ave., Augusta. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife is also accepting written comments on the season until Sept. 8. Comments can be emailed to becky.orff@maine.gov.

That’s a formal cue to send some comments about how well flow devices work and how beaver problems can be managed. You know I will! Right after I send Karen a note to thank her for this nicely written reminder.

Riparian Ripple Effects

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beavers and Birds, Beavers and climate change, Beavers and Forests, Beavers and Frogs, Beavers and Ice, Beavers and Insects, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Environmental August 14, 2017

There’s a nice article out of the Michigan Fishing Wire that I know you’ll enjoy. It’s all about the Riparian and why it matters. The term riparian is from the latin riparius meaning river bank and first use in 1849. But it also relates to the old norse term meaning ‘rip’ as the bank is cut away from the land by water. Now Michigan got really excited about beavers coming back to the Detroit River, but they don’t exactly love them if you know what I mean.

Riparian Areas–Valuable for Fish, People and Wildlife

The thousands of rivers, lakes and streams in Michigan are beautiful, special places, not only to a wide range of people, including anglers, boaters and campers, but numerous plant and animal species. Those areas between the water and the uplands are called riparian areas or riparian zones. A riparian management zone is “an area designated and consciously managed to protect functions and values of riparian areas.”

Within a watershed — the area drained by a river or stream system — the lands next to streams and rivers are particularly important to the health of those waterways. “Because of the unique conditions adjacent to lakes, streams and open-water wetlands, riparian areas harbor a high diversity of plants and wildlife,” Michigan Department of Natural Resources fisheries biologists said in a report on “Riparian Zone Management and Trout Streams: 21st Century and Beyond.” “Life is simply richer along rivers and streams.

“Riparian areas are ecologically and socially significant in their effects on water quality and quantity, as well as aesthetics, habitat, bank stability, timber production, and their contribution to overall biodiversity.” Plant habitat along rivers and streams is called riparian vegetation. The plants that grow there have an affinity for water.

“Vegetative cover refers to overhanging or submerged tree limbs, shrubs and other plants growing along the shore of the waterbody,” the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s website states. “Rivers, streams and lakes can be buffered from the effects of human disturbance in the watershed by varied, multi-layered vegetation in the land corridor that surrounds them.

“Healthy, intact vegetative cover in these riparian areas can help reduce nutrient and sediment runoff from the surrounding landscape, prevent bank erosion and provide shade to reduce water temperature. Vegetative cover can also provide leaf litter and large wood (such as branches and logs) to serve as food, shelter and habitat for aquatic organisms.”

In Michigan, large woody debris from mature trees growing along streambanks controls how streams look and function.

“Large woody debris provides cover for salmonids (trout and salmon), habitat and food for aquatic invertebrates, adds nutrients, traps smaller debris, provides feeding and resting sites for a wide variety of wildlife, and has other beneficial effects,” the DNR fisheries biologists said. “When leaves, twigs, sticks and even entire trees fall into streams, they provide both food and shelter for aquatic insects, and habitat for reptiles, amphibians, fish, mammals and birds.”

“These include larval and/or adult water bugs, water beetles, caddisflies, stoneflies, dragonflies/damselflies, mayflies, fish flies/alderflies, true flies, riffle beetles, aquatic earthworms, scuds, leeches, snails and limpets, and crayfish,” the park’s website said. “The presence of caddisfly, stonefly and May fly larvae indicate that streams here are of high quality and are in good ecological health.”

The DNR fisheries biologists said the agency and its partners spend many thousands of dollars each year to introduce additional large woody debris into our river systems, debris that has been lost artificially over time due to a variety of circumstances.

Do you think this article, focused on the benefit of the riparian and emphasizing the thousands of dollars spent every year to get woody debris into it, might mention the importance of the hardworking animal who does it for free? Well only in the briefest nonspecific way, of course.

Tree frogs, wood turtles, salamanders, and many other reptiles and amphibians, use the water for laying eggs and breeding each spring. Ospreys, eagles and herons are among the bird species that rely on streams, lakes and rivers for food and nest in large trees nearby.

The endangered piping plover nests and feeds on the sandy and rocky beaches of Lakes Michigan, Huron and Superior. Terns and gulls nest on rocky shoals and island shorelines. Ducks, geese and swans nest on coastal marshes.

“Mink, otters, muskrats and beavers can be found feeding and denning along river shorelines,” Vaughn said. “A handful of unique tree species also grow on the banks of Michigan’s rivers. Paw-paw, blue beech or musclewood, and sycamore trees thrive in the wet, periodically flooded soils along rivers.”

That’s all the mention they get, but it’s still a pretty nice article. And hey, I just realized you could easily replace the word ‘RIPARIAN’ with the words ‘BEAVER” and have yourself a very nice article.

~~Riparian~~ Beaver areas help control non-point source pollution by holding and using nutrients and reducing sediment.

~~Riparian~~ Beaver areas are often important for the recreation and scenic values. However, because riparian areas are relatively small and occur in conjunction with watercourses, they are vulnerable to severe alteration and damages caused by people.

~~Riparian~~ Beaver areas supply food, cover, and water for a large diversity of animals and serve as migration routes and stopping points between habitats for a variety of wildlife.

Trees and grasses in ~~riparian~~ beaver areas stabilize stream banks and reduce floodwater velocity, resulting in reduced downstream flood peaks.

Alluvial aquifers help maintain the base flow in many rivers in humid areas because of high water tables. In drier climates, streams lose water that can help build up the water table deep beneath the stream.

Tadaa! Much better! The article mentions a group called ‘River Partners’ based in California. Which makes me wonder how those feel about the flat tailed partner in general? Maybe they get a letter.

Speaking of the valuable things that come out of Riparian Zones, look what Moses filmed yesterday morning along Alhambra Creek. Looks like that little dam is cousin to a slightly more established one upstream which is the front yard of at least TWO beavers. The smaller one looks young (check out that tail length) and could easily be the youngster that was born in the creek last October (ten months old?). Which would suggest that there are actually more of them than this film shows. But who really knows, they could be a totally new family just settling.

That particular RIPARIAN is very very deeply incised, so I can’t imagine a dam will stand any chance at all once it starts raining. And every foot is lined with houses, so operation ‘educate and pacify the neighbors’ will have to be in full swing! I’m just happy they’re here. And so, obviously is that little skunk who finally has a way to get across the creek.

When you debate beavers, you learn twice.

heidi08 Beaver Chewing, Beavers and Frogs, Beavers and Insects, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, Beavers or Social Ambasadors, City Reports August 9, 2017

When author Ben Goldfarb was here, I mentioned how whistful I’d be when the UK finally accepted the inevitable decision to live with beavers. He wondered why, and I explained that needing to extoll their benefits over and over to convince their countrymen was hugely valuable to all of us – and an international reminder of the good that beavers do EVERYWHERE. Take this newest article in the Guardian for example.

Dam it! How beavers could save Britain from flooding

The return of beavers to Britain half a millennium after we hunted them to extinction is both thrilling and controversial. The Eurasian beaver has been reintroduced into virtually every European country in recent

decades, including densely populated nations such as the Netherlands, where conservationists laugh at Britain’s agonies over the animal. While Britain remains a member of the EU, it is obliged to reintroduce extinct species “where feasible”. In Scotland, the government last year declared the animal a native, protected species after an official trial and unofficial releases – the first ever formal reintroduction of a once-native British mammal. In England, several Bavarian beavers unofficially let loose on to the river Otter in east Devon are now part of an official trial licensed by Natural England, the government’s conservation watchdog. In 2020, the government will decide whether to allow them back for good.

In Europe, beavers have stimulated ecotourism, but they may also benefit human communities in other ways. Scientific studies show that their dams remove pollutants from water – they are particularly effective at filtering out harmful phosphates – and reduce floodwater peaks. Enthusiasts proclaim these large herbivores could become 21st-century water engineers, protecting towns from flooding. But some farmers hate beavers because their dams can also flood productive land. In one Scottish valley, where beaver numbers are estimated to have risen to several hundred, beavers have been shot before the formal legal protection is in place. Beavers can live in Britain but can the British live with beavers?

The experimental site in Devon is vivid proof of how beavers create a wildlife paradise, re-engineering small valleys with amphibian- and insect-friendly ponds. Exeter University scientists counted 10 clumps of frogspawn here in 2011; this year there are 681. There were eight species of water beetle in 2011; 26 in 2015. Herons, grass snakes, kingfishers, willow tits, rare barbastelle bats have all returned. In Scotland, ecologists recently found that beavers increased the number of plant species by nearly 50% because they create such a rich variety of habitats, from saturated meadows to sunny glades where moisture- and light-loving plants prosper.

But it’s the beavers’ water works that have really struck those studying the site in west Devon. Its small beaver ponds and soil saturated by damming hold nearly 1m litres of water. Scientific instruments measure water flows and quality above and below the site. The beaver dams improve water quality. (Phosphates and excessive fertilisers washed into waterways can create toxic algal blooms, which can be fatal for anything from fish to swimming dogs.) Exeter University researchers have collated data in a remarkable graph showing flood events. During heavy rain, the volume of water flow increases rapidly above the site, creating a dramatic spike in the graph. But when the floodwater is measured again below the site, there is a gentle curve. In other words, the beavers dramatically reduce the peak flow of floodwater on this stream.

With articles like this in huge papers like the guardian, I can’t imagine the decision is very far off. But I honestly wish it were. I wish it would take them centuries of public debate and mountains of scientific study just so that we could see articles like this over and over again in the paper. I’m the first to admit my motives are entirely selfish. There is enormous value in highlighting for the public and the farmers alike how radically important beaver are to the landscape.

Don’t rush into anything, Britain. Talk about it some more.

Elliott says that, in Devon, “the farmers say to us: ‘We don’t mind the beaver, but if they return we need to be able to deal with problems quickly.’” This doesn’t necessarily mean killing them. In two instances so far on the Otter, dams have flooded small areas of grazing pasture. Under the trial’s terms, Devon Wildlife Trust pays to solve the problem at no expense to the farmer. In one case, it installed a “beaver deceiver”. This pipe goes through the dam, lowering the water level and stopping flooding. The pipe is concealed and covered with mesh, so busy beavers can’t block it. Important trees are protected with a sandy-textured anti-beaver paint – the animals hate chewing it. The trust hopes that such technologies will allow beavers back into human-dominated countryside, but also knows that farmers’ acceptance may depend upon government payments to reward them if agricultural land is given over to beaver-created flood defence.

On the banks of the Otter there are more storylines than a soap opera. A nosy dog recently got a nip from a beaver for straying too close to its lodge. The other night, a badger slipped from the riverbank into the water and was hustled out by a beaver. Locals named one adult Bob, but were surprised when it returned with a pink eartag. So it’s now Mrs Bob, its mate Mr Bob; their kits Miss Bob, Master Bob, Bobby Junior and Roberta.

“It’s the little ones that have really enthralled me,” says local Gaynor Cooper, who comes out most nights. “They are tranquil and seem very gentle.” These slow-moving herbivores don’t eat fish and are much more easily spotted than otters. Five minutes after the first picnic blanket is laid down, there’s a plop of flat tail against water and Mrs Bob glides upstream, with a cute black button nose and brown fur matching the muddy bank.

Ah, yes, I remember. Those golden hours spent watching and waiting at the dam. The surprise at finding how unhuman and unquarrelsome beavers are with each other. I’m happy to know the origin of Mrs. Bob. I had heard of her generous and exhibitionist ways but didn’t know how she got the name. Reporter Patrick Barkham does a great job talking to the right people and learning about beavers, but apparently everyone who works for the paper didn’t do their homework. The current copy of the article has that adorably fuzzy baby beaver photo at the start. But a woman from the UK posted their version yesterday on the Save the beavers of England FB page and it had a photo of a groundhog.

Obviously learning about all beavers is still a work in progress.

Beaver festival and beyond

heidi08 Beavers and Birds, Beavers and Frogs, Beavers and Insects, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, Festival, What's killing beavers now?, Who's saving beavers now? August 8, 2017

The bulk of auction items found there way home yesterday, on the Monday after the festival which is unhead of. I have a few stragglers to complete today, but I’m thinking the whole thing will be done by Wednesday. I can’t tell you how delightful that feels! I guess one of the advantages of having no Peddler’s faire to share foot traffic with is that everyone stayed at the festival and claimed their prizes. Hurray!

To my great delight yesterday I finally had time to open the filming that some friendly moms did of their children doing the jjournal activity. I had asked a few to shoot video because I might think about making a film later on of the process itself. It was wonderful to have a moles-eye view (do moles have eyes? Maybe a gopher’s- eye) of what went on at each booth. But I was especially delighted with this moment, which I had to share. That’s Dave Kwinter on the bag pipe btw.

Outside the festival bubble, in the larger beaver world there was a nice report of community upset by the loss of water caused partially by removing a beaver dam that caught my attention. I just love it when people point out that draining a pond will rapidly reduce property value.

Fayette’s David Pond losing water, alarming property owners who want action

Shorefront property owners are working with owners of the pond’s impoundment to seek a solution amid concern that reduced water level could affect wildlife, recreation and ecology and depress property values.

FAYETTE — The lower water level of David Pond this year has spurred those with waterfront property and waterfront access there to organize in search of a solution.

They say recent damage to a rock pile impoundment at the north end of the pond caused the water level to take a significant drop, and they cite concerns about the effect on “wildlife, recreation, ecology, and declining property values and the resulting losses to the town tax base,” in a website posting by Elizabeth Hicks.

Hicks is one of eight people on a steering committee looking for a solution. “We don’t know how stable the current situation is,” she said. “We would like to move on it very quickly.”

When Hicks and others brought their concerns to the Fayette Board of Selectmen, she said, they received sympathy but were told the board could do little because the impoundment was in neighboring Chesterville, which is in Franklin County.

“It’s been a little, ongoing dam war,” Cayer said. “What happens is the landowners are responsible, so we have to do some kind of remediation out there, but we’re not sure yet what that’s going to be.”

She said some people built up the dam to raise the water level and someone else came out and dismantled it, as well as part of a beaver dam, to lower the water.

This article is a wonderful reminder that removal of a beaver dam has consequences for the entire community, including the wildlife using the water behind it. It sounds like some of the residents want their pond back and some of them don’t. I’m curious what will happen. Obviously the beaver dam wasn’t the only thing dismantled, but I’m sure there was also some trapping involved. It’s certainly the wrong time of year to be ripping out ponds. It will take a long time to get that water back now.

Speaking of ponds and times of year, Rusty Cohn of Napa has been enjoying the golden time of year at Tulocay Creek by visiting several times a week. This is the precious look at Mom and the new kit he got last night. Double click on any photo for a larger view and get ready to say it with me now.

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

Alaska Answers

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beavers and Ice, Beavers and Insects, Beavers and salmon, Beavers elsewhere, Educational, Environmental, Who's saving beavers now? July 31, 2017

Yesterday’s bagging and tagging of the silent auction items was a breeze with Leslie and Deidre’s capable help. Everything should come together easily on the day, and I have great faith it will produce irresistible attraction to many gleeful bidders. Both Leslie and Deidre already bought 5 posters each and two beaver mini-journals, so the allure of those items is not in question!

Which makes it a great time to appreciate the very good work coming out of Alaska who is (as it happens) much, much smarter about the relationship between beavers and salmon than the PBS program on the very topic in question. Here’s today’s podcast on the subject of upland sloughs in glacier rivers. Listen for a great short description of why beaver ponds are safe rearing habitat for Coho salmon.

The Ecology of Glacial Rivers: Upland or backwater sloughs

The third of a new series from the Susitna Salmon Center: The Ecology of Glacial Rivers. This segment by Jeff Davis, and voiced by Katie Kierczynski, describes how suspended sediment changes conditions in main channels of glacial rivers, and how fish have adapted to these changes.

Beavers often build dams across the mouths of upland sloughs increasing water depths, and decreasing water velocities. Water depths in sloughs is maintained by flows in the mainstem. High mainstem water keeps waters deep in sloughs; however, when water levels drop in the fall, sloughs can drain or become very shallow. Beaver dams help maintain water depths in sloughs even when flows in the main channel are low.

Thanks KTNA for a great summary. I only wish everyone was listening!

I found out this week from a friend working for the beaver patrol started by our old friend Bob Armstrong in Juneau, that Bob has retired from the patrolling but is maintaining a great website using his photos and observations over the years. It’s called Bob Armstrong’s Nature Alaska! Go check it out with caution because you just might end up spending hours lost in the wonders of his epic work.

Meanwhile festival-news gotta boost from a nice article in the Martinez Gazette yesterday. Hopefully all this will help us have a great attendance this year, even without the peddler’s fair! Double click on it to zoom in close.