Category: Beavers and trout

I heard the beavers Christmas day

heidi08 Beaver Chewing, Beavers, 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? December 25, 2015

Ring beaver myths still loud and deep
The war’s not won, nor shall we sleep
For fear and doubt
Persist in drought
Our water-savers spurned by men

Apologies to Mr. Longfellow

It’s christmas day, and just in case our puddings and cakes make us feel too lazy and indulged to believe the world needs us to pay attention to beavers, here are two prime examples that should remind us what we’re fighting for. The first is from the heart of the drylands where anything that saves even a drop of water should be regarded as a national treasure. Seems like these school girls know what they’re about, but their neighbor, the beaver grinch, has other ideas. Merry Christmas.

Beavers create barriers between Girls’ School, neighbor

For nearly a decade, the Santa Fe Girls’ School has taught students about the environment through restoration projects and science experiments on a nearly 9-acre swath of land south of the city that includes a portion of the Santa Fe River. Principal Lee Lewin says the parcel in La Cieneguilla is a crucial part of the curriculum for the school’s 40-plus middle school students.

But an ongoing dispute between the private school and a neighboring landowner has heated up in recent months, and the girls’ work at the site has been halted.

The neighbor — hunter, businessman and self-proclaimed conservationist Ed Sceery — contends the girls’ efforts have attracted beavers that are damaging land and trees, and he warns that they are working in contaminated water. School officials say Sceery has endangered the girls by placing a metal contraption in a pond on the property where they often roam. The device’s function is unclear, but school staff said they think it’s intended to break up beaver dams.

Sceery, who earned a doctorate in animal sciences at New Mexico State University, lives downstream from the Girls’ School property. He owns and operates Sceery Outdoors, a company that makes and sells game calls for elk, deer, turkey and other animals. His wares are sold in specialty hunting markets, such as Cabela’s, and general stores, including Wal-Mart.

Okay, first of all that device doesn’t break up beaver dams, it breaks up BEAVERS. Mind you his trees have already been protected by a deal with Wild Earth Guardians. But if Dr. Sceery says that the water’s contaminated, I myself believe him. He should know, because I bet he poured the lighter fluid in himself. I’m relieved to hear he’s also a “conservationist” because that means he has deep abiding respect for the animal that Enos Mills called “the original conservationists“. Right?

Honestly, this whole story should be written by Charles Dickens. The trap-setting hunter who sells decoys to walmart doesn’t want the beavers near his property happens to be named Dr. Sceery? Am I on candid camera? Is he just pretending that’s his name because Dr. Eevil was taken? Was he assigned that name by the department of ruthless irony? Did he really believe it was a good idea to set a trap on school property without permission where lovely eco-minded young girls walk every day?

And just in case you think I’m making this up, here’s another headline worthy of a Christmas tree.

Otters, beavers feasting around fish ladder at Rocky Reach Dam

WENATCHEE — Otters and beavers may have discovered it’s easier to capture a nice fish dinner by congregating at the fish ladder at Rocky Reach Dam and entering the current to pursue their prey. Either that, or they’re just chasing fish and having fun.

Video recordings at the dam show one or more of the aquatic critters swimming past the fish-counting window between May and October.

One otter was chasing a small fish. Another is latched onto a carp not much smaller than itself. In another shot, a beaver appears to be engaged in some good-natured exploring.

That’s right. It’s YAKIMA in Washington, which I have foolishly considered the state with the highest beaver IQ in the country. And the biologists watching the salmon counter think that the beavers are there for supper. Here is an actual headline about BEAVERS EATING FISH.

“We’re not sure how many salmon they’ve actually taken,” Von Pope, the PUD’s Wildlife Program manager, said Wednesday. “Maybe some smaller ones.”

When salmon are migrating past the dam, the video camera operates around the clock. Human fish counters come in and review the video to tally the numbers of each species of fish.

Thad Mosey, the PUD’s senior fish biologist, says no fish counter has ever seen an otter or beaver in the fish-counting window in real time. But they occasionally appear in the video recordings.

I have nothing to say but this.

You deserve a dose of cheer after all that beaver-stupid. Here’s a little something I hope you sing along with your family by the fire. Merry Christmas from Worth A Dam!

It’s always darkest just before the dawn

heidi08 Beavers, Beavers and Birds, Beavers and Forests, Beavers and Frogs, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, Educational, Environmental, Who's blaming beavers now?, Who's saving beavers now? December 16, 2015

Things were looking might grim for the beavers of Tom’s River in New Jersey a couple days ago. Residents had taken all they could stand of the animals blocking the outflow of the lake, which meant creeping water lines into their gardens. Trapping season doesn’t start until the day after Christmas, and we all know how hard it is to wait until Christmas. They were chomping at the bit to get rid of the animals once and for all.

Toms River’s dam dilemma

Leave it to the beavers.

Township Engineer Robert Chankalian points out a clogged drain. Beavers are wreaking havoc for residents along Lake Placid Drive and Oak Glen Road by clogging the drainage systems along the lake between the two roads. Toms River, NJ Wednesday, November 18, 2015 @dhoodhood (Photo: Doug Hood/Staff Photographer)

The industrious, brown-furred rodents have been building dams in Lake Placid here, and some residents say that flooding caused by the busy beavers threatens their yards and homes. Beavers have become a big problem in this part of Toms River — so much so that it’s already cost Toms River some $75,000 to $80,000 to put in drainage facilities to dissuade the beavers, but the efforts aren’t working, said Business Administrator Paul Shives.

“For the past three years, the width of the stream has widened four to five times,” Lake Placid Drive resident Anthony Gural said at a recent Township Council meeting. “It’s approximately seven feet from my property.”

Come on, just 75,000 to 80,000 to dissuade the beavers? They are very hard to dissuade. Is that ALL you can manage lying about? In Martinez we said beavers cost the cities hundreds of thousands, $375,000 to be exact. We even got a gullible reporter from the LA Times to repeat it. I mean its just a made up number. Why not make a big one?

Regardless of how much the oddly named Tom’s River has spent valiantly hiring backhoes or throwing keg parties to discourage the beavers, it just hasn’t worked. Awww. Lucky for them New Jersey happens to be the home of the Unexpected Wildlife Refuge. So newly minted director Veronica Van hof called her many beaver friends to the plate. This morning she announced that Mike Callahan of Beaver Solutions will consult for free. And Owen Brown of Beavers: Wetlands & Wildlife will pitch in if he needs a helper.

Their local Patch reports:

Beavers Vexing Toms River Resident

An animal group that operates a sanctuary was meeting informally with township officials on Monday in an attempt to convince officials not to kill the animals.

“More humane, compassionate and ethical methods of discouraging beavers from damming waterways and causing flooding exist. In the long run, these preferred methods are more successful and actually save money,” a member of the group Unexpected Wildlife Refuge, which takes particular interest in beavers.

I’d say they take a particular interest in beavers. The refuge was started by Hope Buyukmihci and her husband, with a special dedication to the animals. Here’s a favorite photo of Hope that should make her feelings fairly clear.

I would caution that the battle isn’t over yet, I mean just because the solution is offered there’s no telling if it will be accepted. And the rights of property owners versus the rights of beavers is never a fair fight. But I’m hopeful with all these good players involved there’s at least a chance for a Happy New Year.

In the mean time there was a LOVELY look at beavers on Wild Canada the other day, which I think I can share with you for a while. And before you say to yourself, beavers hrmph, who needs to see more of them, let me tell you that the beautiful documentary contains a NEVER BEFORE SEEN DISCOVERY of muskrat behavior in the beaver lodge. You will NOT believe it. The whole thing is excellent and the clip starts with great wolverine footage, which is pretty rare too. I’d watch it all the way through when you have time before it ceases to be available.

GO! Tell it on the mountain!

heidi08 Beavers and Birds, Beavers and Forests, Beavers and Frogs, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers or Social Ambasadors, City Reports, Creative Solutions, Environmental, Who's saving beavers now? December 15, 2015

I thought this article deserved some seasonal celebration and this endeared itself to me. Especially the twirling little girl in red on the left who is certain it’s a ballet she’s been asked to conform. Ahh youth! Now read that upcoming headline and just SEE if this doesn’t make you want to add a little pirouette of your own!

Leaving it to beavers: Communities make room for natural engineers

Once valued as little more than pelts, beavers are back in vogue and rebuilding their reputation as habitat engineers.

It helps their cause that the dams they build as homes also create water quality-boosting wetlands and habitat for other species. In the process, the structures slow the flow of water and filter out sediment that would otherwise be on its way to the Chesapeake Bay.

John Griffin, director of urban wildlife programs at the U.S. Humane Society, said beavers are often embroiled in conflicts when their dams result in flooding or other impacts to the developments around them.

“When people are living in an urban area, they think that animals belong in a natural habitat — not here,” he said. “We’re not thinking about there being a functioning ecosystem here.”

The problems arise when both humans and beavers build their homes around natural water features, and each has impacts on the other. But, Griffin said, there are solutions that allow both to be good neighbors.

Residents can use tree guards to protect their expensive ornamentals from beavers’ teeth. Rather than destroying dams or trapping beavers, they can mitigate the impact of rising water tables with devices like the “beaver deceiver,” which uses pipes to channel water through the dam while giving the beaver the feeling of damming the stream.

Beavers and their dams also bring new habitats to urban and suburban environments, creating the wetlands known to be key to several species’ survival. Griffin said more people are warming to the idea that a beaver can bring benefits to the neighborhood.

Urban parks can be a great place for beavers to redefine the landscape, as they have at Bladensburg Waterfront Park along the District of Columbia’s stretch of the Anacostia River. Jorge Bogantes Montero, stewardship program specialist in natural resources for the Anacostia Watershed Society, said three beaver dams constructed in one stretch of the park demonstrate their ability to attract wildlife and clean the water even in the middle of the city.

Nice.

I always believed the day would come when I would read an entire article that said exactly what I would have said if I had written it, but I in fact didn’t write it and knew nothing at all about it – from the other half of the country. I believed the day would come, but I didn’t know for sure, because you never, ever know how these things will turn out. I worked so hard I had wanted to show you what I’ve written so far for the urban beaver chapter, but if you read this article very closely you will get the idea.

Just remember that before Martinez took the plunge in 2007 the phrase ‘Urban Beavers’ was on no one’s lips. And now its popping up on East Coast articles where beaver phobia is usually rampant. I’m so proud of us. We all deserve this to get us ready for what’s to come.

Working for you!

heidi08 Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, Educational, Environmental, Who's saving beavers now? December 12, 2015

This morning I’m sharing a great article from the winter newsletter of our friends at the Seventh Generation Institute in New Mexico. This is the story of a workshop for ranchers they held in Nevada. It was enticingly called, “Making beaver work for you“, so you know it got my attention. The last paragraph reveals their true mission: “Keeping beavers in streams where they can work their magic! ” Enjoy.

*This barn at the Winecup-Gamble ranch made a perfect shady place for teams to build flow device parts, learn about beaver behavior and share a few stories.*

Of course , around here we would say “That’s BEAVER impact”. But that’s just us. Great work!

SO MUCH LEARNING!

heidi08 Beaver Chewing, Beavers and Birds, Beavers and Forests, Beavers and Frogs, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, What's killing beavers now?, Who's blaming beavers now? December 9, 2015

The bright sparks of dimly lit Nevada are continuing to process ground-breaking research and expert advice using their intricate circular filing method. They have received consultation from the Sierra Wildlife Coalition, the Human Society, the Sierra Club, Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, and Worth A Dam, so of course they are paying the most careful attention.

Sparks changes tactics with nuisance beavers

Nuisance beavers have been gnawing their way through trees and building dams along the North Truckee Drain in Sparks, causing damage and increasing the risk of residential flooding.

After spending city resources focusing on the dams to little long-term effect, the city of Sparks recently tried to shift its focus to the beaver population itself. In order to mitigate the problems caused by the dam-building beavers, the city was advised by the Nevada Department of Wildlife to seek a special permit last month to catch and kill the animals. As of last week, however, the city decided to put that strategy on hold, concerned about the inhumane nature of the process.

The permit, which was issued Nov. 10 and is good for a full year, gave the city permission to remove the animals through trapping and/or shooting them, which they decided to do through a third party contractor. Captured animals are not allowed to be moved or relocated due to the potential spread of disease, such as the infectious bacterial illness tularemia, and the territoriality that occurs between beaver populations.

The beavers in Sparks were being trapped underwater to avoid potentially capturing domestic animals, or even small children, above ground. The beavers were drowning to death, which the city now feels is not the most humane way to take care of the problem. Five beavers were killed in total.

Well at least they finally got the beaver deaths reported, even if they didn’t admit that it was an entire family. Sherry and Ted Guzzi have been hard at work offering solutions to problems at hand, and we had a long discussion about how to wriggle maximum support out of their lying, opportunistic mouths. But obviously there has been little real change. Just look at what Mr. Healy is saying even after I specifically sent him three research articles on beavers and birds.

“This is part of the ongoing drought,” said Chris Healy, spokesman for NDOW. “When we have troubles with drought, water sources are limited, and so instead of the beavers taking out willows and creating dams, they go up drains and start taking out trees.”

Nevada law allows for the aggressive removal of beavers that are obstructing the free flow of water. Beavers can also cause significant damage to a river’s ecosystem, Healy said, in that they remove the limited number of trees that provide nesting for local birds and contribute to healthy fish habitats.

“Trees take decades to grow, whereas beavers only take a season to grow,” Healy said. “Nobody wants to kill an animal, but in some circumstances we have to do that. There are logical reasons for why we do what we do.”

Apparently trees in Nevada don’t coppice and Mr. Healy has never heard of the work beavers are doing to restore streams just up the road in his very own state. His is also unaware that beavers don’t respond to drought by moving into city drains. He feels no need to trouble himself with the research saying that beavers help birds, because he obviously knows better. Five years ago I’m sure he’d be saying beavers don’t belong because they’re not native. So that progress of a kind. And hey, beavers DO take less time to grow than trees. He’s got me there.

I guess what this all proves is that you can lead the NDOW to information about water, but you can’t make them THINK.

We need a good story to get that taste out of our mouths. This will do nicely.

New Beaver Dam in Roosevelt Forest teaches Lauralton Hall & Fairfield Prep students about beaver ecology

On November 24, Lauralton Hall students and Fairfield prep students met up with Christina Batoh, Stratford’s Conservation Officer, to learn about beaver ecology at the site of a recently constructed beaver dam in Roosevelt Forest. Students set out to answer the question, “Does the presence of the beaver dam impact stream water quality?” To do this they tested water samples from an upstream site.

Lauralton Hall students instructed their Fairfield Prep counterparts in how to conduct tests for dissolved oxygen, carbon dioxide, turbidity (sediment load), and pH. Students then analyzed their test results and concluded that the presence of the beaver dam does indeed impact stream water quality with water downstream having better quality than the water upstream or at the dam site.

Got that? Did the high school student go to fast for you Mr. Healy? Let me know and I can slow them down. There’s more to talk about in the Ecologist this morning, but I have a conference call for the paper this morning, and am going to have to stop for now. For some reason, I’m thinking this video might be helpful to our new BFF in his scientific quest for the ecologic advancement.