Category: Beavers elsewhere

IT WAS THE BEST OF TIMES, AND IT WAS THE WORST OF TIMES…

The rose-colored beaver glasses of late September have withered to a much more fullsome beaver picture. Mostly the superheroes are still regarded as pests. But sometimes a few folk still rally for them. Go figure.

This was an admirable letter on their behalf from Canada.

Letter: City of Airdrie shouldn’t kill its beavers

Nose Creek starts by Crossfield and flows to the Bow River with a watershed of 989 KM2. It flows through Airdrie and it was a small prairie creek. The City of Airdrie put in several dams creating some beautiful ponds that any beaver family would be proud of. As the story goes “if you build it, they will come” and come they did.

We live in Waterstone on the creek and love watching all the people and wildlife who enjoy the path and waterway. The pond was built and the beaver came and were welcomed, building a lodge and raised countless families over the years.

But this wonder of nature comes at a cost. As well all know, beavers eat bark. So we lose a tree or two each year – especially in the fall, when they put up a winter supply of food to get through until the spring.

Now, this is not a natural pond or a habitat for beavers, as there is no forest for them. Yet the pond is there and they do live there, much to the enjoyment of many who stop to watch them on a summer’s evening.

Two years ago, the City of Airdrie’s parks officials decided to kill them. But the shock of local residents got them to stop this and they decided to give a shot at being good stewards. Wire fencing went up around the trees to limit the food source. The beavers did just fine, raising more families and entertaining the park goers.

Well that certainly sounds promising. Wrapping trees with wire is good business for people who know that beavers are busy making habitat for all the wildlife. Maybe if you added a couple weekends where the community plants willow stakes you’d be in business.

Yes, they did eat a tree or two each year and the City planted trees but not the kind that beaver need. Now one could say that was poorly thought out. And maybe, we could live in harmony with the beaver and plant something they needed and are beautiful to watch grow like a Brooks No. 6 Poplar. This poplar grows very fast, has no white fluff like a cottonwood, and grows huge in 30 years. The park has a lot of space for this food source. But you would have to be good stewards, keep them from falling where you don’t want them to, and take the wire off a couple old trees each year.

But no, being a good steward and living in harmony with wildlife is too hard. “Let’s just kill them” and hope they don’t come back. And if they do, we’ll just keep killing them.

Does that sound like a good steward and a society you want to raise your family around? The beavers keep trying in hopes that we will find better stewards for our community.

Everyone should know that the very best time to plant a tree was 30 years ago. The next best time to plant is today.

Good advice for the city. But take it yourselves. Get a community organization to take it on. Organize a weekend of planting willow cuttings or fascines. Get the city to approve it, put a boy or girl scout in charge. Call the media and get some adorable photos of children digging holes run on the evening news, ‘

This is all doable. You are the change you’ve been waiting for.

Now onto the worst of times in Ohio where killing beavers is sooo much fun they have to hold a lottery to find out who gets the privilege.

Lottery for river otter, beaver trapping is Oct. 8

COLUMBUS — Beaver and river otter trapping permits on managed areas for the 2022-23 season will be issued via in-person lotteries Oct. 8, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife.

A permit is required to trap beaver and river otter on state-managed areas, including wildlife areas, state parks and state forests. A complete list of available trapping permits is available on the Controlled Hunting Access Lotteries page at wildohio.gov.

Drawings will occur at noon at each division of wildlife district office. Office locations can be found at wildohio.gov. Each permittee may select one partner to accompany them for the duration of the season. Beaver and river otter trapping lotteries are grouped by region; trappers may apply in only one district (central, northeast, northwest, southeast, southwest). Beaver and river otter trapping permits are valid from Dec. 26 to Feb. 28, 2023.

Seriously? The trap allows you to kill beavers and otters in state parks? What if you decided that hey people like to SEE wildlife in the park when they visit. What if you DIDN’T kill them? Hmm now we just need a couple undercover PETA members to show up to those offices and win the raffles. Doesn’t sound to hard does it?

Good lord. Surviving in this world with redevelopment and traffic and fires and destroyed trees is ALREADY a lottery. Stop making their lives more difficult.

NATICK IS SHOCKED THAT PUNCHING THE DAM ISN’T WORKING

heidi08 Attitudes towards beavers, Who's blaming beavers now? September 29, 2022

A little burst of beaver blessing news and you forget. You forget that all around us their water saving dams are destroyed and they themselves are trapped and despised. Well some people forget. We probably never will.

Beaver battle ongoing along Natick’s Hunnewell Town Forest trail

The beavers that live alongside the Hunnewell Town Forest trail off of Oak Street in Natick haven’t been backing down from the challenges of those breaching their dam over the past month in Little Jennings Pond.

As the town’s Conservation Commission indicated at its Aug. 11 meeting, the Natick Public Works Department was authorized to “punch a hole in the dam” in September, and it did.

But the beavers came right back and plugged the gap, keeping a section of the blue trail in the Town Forest off limits to people.

Since then, at least a couple more breaches have been executed, one that was erased rather quickly, and now a more ambitious one of which a Natick Report reader has shared photos.

Punch a hole in the dam? Who says that? Who authorizes such things? Where are we?

Of course whether you punch a hole in the dam or blow it up or “notch” it as we delicate californias say the beavers are not suddenly homeless. Because, now listen to this very carefully, BEAVERS DO NOT LIVE IN THE DAM.

Claire Rundelli, planner conservation agent for the town, said that after the Public Works breach earlier this month there weren’t any additional approvals for breaches. When asked about the beavers during the Sept. 15 Conservation Commission, she said “we’ve heard nothing from the beavers in recent days.”

The Commission held a town-wide beaver discussion in March in conjunction with the Trails and Forest Stewardship Committee, and Open Space Advisory Committee, and it ended with consensus to adapt to the beavers rather than trap them. The thinking was that other beavers would just come back to the area and rebuild the dam.

Natick has rerouted an oft-flooded trail at the Town Forest to avoid the beaver dam’s impact. Flow devices used to address beaver issues in other parts of Natick’s complex and large watershed were deemed unlikely to work in the relatively shallow water along the Town Forest trail.

Really? Flow devices won’t work and the beavers haven’t contacted you in recent days? I’m shocked. They usually send perfect messages detailing their plans by email. Honestly, if people want you to coexist with the beavers STOP PUNCHING THE DAM. This might come as a shock to you but punching is not coexisting. I learned that in my yoga class. You should come. I’ll save you a space.

BEAVERS ARE GOOD EATING, BLESS THEIR HEARTS

heidi08 Attitudes towards beavers, Who's Killing Beavers Now? September 25, 2022

You have to love Alaska. Everyone rushing to say nice things about beavers and they’re like frowning and being your southern great aunt Bessie saying “Bless their little hearts”. We know what they really mean don’t we? The headline really gives it away doesn’t it?

They can be destructive, but beavers and their habitat play a key role in a prosperous natural world

Everyone is familiar with beavers. Some recognize them as industrious dam builders, others see them as nuisances that block culverts and cut down valuable trees. No matter how one feels about this large rodent, they must be granted the distinction of being one of our most valuable species of wildlife.

Mountain men explored the West in part by pursuing valuable beaver pelts. The fashionable sheared beaver-top hats passed from the scene with the advent of the felt hat. Beaver soon lost its value as the driving force in the North American fur market. The market for beaver pelts has surged and waned since, but the animal itself has retained significance in folklore and in our modern lives.

“Busy as a beaver” is still a catchphrase. The sight of a massive beaver dam inspires interest and awe. Beaver dams can cause damaging floods in urban areas. However, in the woods they provide valuable habitat for many species of birds and other mammals.

Ohhhh, In the woods they are useful! Like compasses that destroy things when you[‘re not in the woods. I get it. What about in the city? What about in Martinez? Oh then they;re just little buzz saws of destruction.

Beaver build ponds for several reasons. The overriding purpose for ponds in Alaska is to provide a safe, stable location for a winter abode. A pond must be created that is deep enough to provide adequate water for a house to have entries that will not freeze shut. Also, since beaver must store large caches of food to survive the winter, this food cache must remain in the water, not frozen in ice. Fall food stores will look like a pile of brush in the water anchored next to the conical beaver lodge. The vast portion of the feed pile will be underwater, out of view.

Stateside, where winters are relatively short, food storage for beavers is not quite the ordeal as it is for their Alaska counterparts. In many parts of the state, ponds will be ice-covered from late September through mid-May. Nine months of life under the ice requires a terrific amount of food. Beaver put on fat reserves during the summer months to help prepare for the lean times to come.

The type of feed generally depends on the location. Cottonwood, poplar and willow are the preferred foods. The Denali Highway lodges have a preponderance of willow. Occasionally there will be poplar, should they be available. A few ponds will have some dwarf birch in the feed pile. One pond I used to trap relied entirely on lily pad stems; their house was built completely with lilies and mud.

In many areas, especially in Alaska, trappers benefit winter survival by taking one or two adult animals from the lodge, thus providing more available feed for the remaining animals. Otherwise the entire group may starve during the tough winter months.

Location and habitat determine the size of an overwintering beaver family. While there may be a dozen or so residents in easy climes, the Denali country usually has a half-dozen members. A typical lodge will have a couple breeding adults, young from the previous year, and the two spring kits. Predation may take a beaver or two, but a wintering family usually consists of no less than four individuals.

Some houses are bachelor houses. These are composed of adult males that lost their mate or have not yet mated. These ponds may have three to five beaver overwintering. No matter how the population of a pond is structured results are similar. The beaver pond is an oasis of activity in the outlands.

Ponds are formed in what otherwise may be just a wandering trickle through the willows. Ponds provide for bountiful insect life. Water bugs, striders and, of course, mosquitoes provide excellent food sources for fish and birds. Every fisherman knows the largest grayling reside in beaver ponds. Duck hunters look for teal, widgeon and pintails that feed on small invertebrates and vegetation in the shallows. Otter and mink also come to hunt. Moose feed on pond weeds and the constantly renewing willow growth.

The beaver pond may be the only safe haven in areas hit hard by wildfires. A look from the air may show the only stretch green for many miles is a well-maintained stream choked with beaver dams.

Now that didn’t hurt so very much did it? Suck it up Alaska and say nice things about beavers. You can do it. Take a deep breath and keep going. Everyone else is doing it.

Beaver can also be an important food source. Past generations of Indigenous people found them easy to catch. A large male may weigh 60 pounds or more. Thirty pounds of rich meat, high in calories, is an extremely valuable addition to a winter diet.

Beaver is a dark meat with a distinct flavor not unlike bison or elk. Beaver taken during the winter months are best with the fat removed — at least for the western palate.

The next time you see a beaver damming up a roadside culvert or cutting your favorite poplar at the weekend cabin, stop and think before damning him for his seemingly destructive industry. The animal who is as busy as a beaver is just an overflow from one of our most important resources hidden deeper in the woods.

WOW. just WOW. I sincerely hope that the next wildfire that destroys your rotten town isn’t sustained by crispy vegetation that would have soaked up moisture if it had been next to that beaver pond you destroyed.

Just don’t do us any favors anchorage, okay? We’ll handle this ourselves.

NOTHING NEW UNDER THE SUN IN PENTICTON

heidi08 Who's Killing Beavers Now? July 16, 2022

Penticton is a city in British Columbia in the Okanagan Valley with a population of about 4o,ooo. It is one of the rare parts of Canada that gets very little or no snow, and it boasts of being nestled between two lakes with lots of summer fun.

It is also a tool belt with only hammers to its name where beavers are concerned.

3 beavers culled from Skaha Park pond

Industriousness killed the beavers.

Three of the flat-tailed, sharp-toothed animals were trapped and euthanized last month after making nuisances of themselves in the stormwater retention pond on the east side of Skaha Lake Park in Penticton.

You see what happens in this paragraph right? The words are carefully selected to present the least sympathetic picture of the beaver and the MOST sympathetic description of their dispatch. “Euthanized” “Culled” they just sound so gentle. And “sharptoothed animals” sounds like something that should be a jurassic park.

Len Robson, the city’s manager of public works, said the beavers were damming culverts and other equipment within the system, potentially putting the public at risk.

“If we let the beavers go in there, that pond won’t work and we end up backing up South Main Street and all those other areas during a flood event, so, unfortunately we have to exterminate the beaver from time to time,” said Robson.

“It’s not one of those things we like to do – it’s a necessity.”

Robson said the number of beavers that need to be removed from the pond varies on a year-to-year basis, with no animals destroyed in 2021.

It sounds so rational doesn’t it? Of course there’s NO OTHER WAY to prevent beavers from damming a culvert besides killing them right? You know like how we can only stop speeding on the hire with assassination?

Some one better write Len about a beaver deceiver, or maybe since it’s Canada a beaver baffler. Apparently the internet has been down since 1993 in those parts.

LIVING WITH BEAVERS IN NEW YORK: CARY INSTITUTE

heidi08 Attitudes towards beavers, Beaver ecological impact, Who's saving beavers now? May 11, 2022

Many moons ago when I was in graduate school I arranged my classes on monday and tuesday and my internship for Thursday and Friday so I had wednesdays off for writing papers. Once a month Jon’s rotating Powerplant shift matched mine and we were both off on wednesday. So this wonder became known as “Special Wednesdays” when we would go hiking to Point Reyes or Canoe up Russian River or drive up the coast to picnic on the beach or hike through douglas Iris.

Special Wednedays were magical and necessary.

Well today might be a pretty special wednsday because it’s your last chance to sign up for this.

On May 11 at 7pm ET, join Cary Institute for a virtual exploration of beaver ecology and management in Hudson Valley, NY

Join us on May 11 at 7pm ET for a virtual exploration of beaver ecology and management in the Hudson Valley. Presented by Mike Fargione, Cary wildlife biologist and Manager of Field Research & Outdoor Programs, and Dan Aitchison, Senior Curator of Wildlife for the Westchester County Department of Parks, Recreation, and Conservation.

Topics to be covered include:

Beaver as ecosystem engineers and keystone species
101 on how beaver alter watersheds
A historical perspective on beaver in New York State
Beaver recolonization of Cary Institute: A case study
How to coexist with beaver and mitigate conflicts

Does that sound pretty fantastic? You bet it does! Just the kind of story a girl from Martinez likes to hear from New York. So you can bet I’ll be tuning in. I hesitated when the link said ‘buy tickets’ but I finally clicked through and realized it was a free event. So Sign up and have a cocktail while you listen to the fantastic news of our New York cousins.

Dan Aitchison has worked in the wildlife field since 2009, as the Senior Curator of Wildlife for the Westchester County Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation. His work has focused on the study of target wildlife species and monitoring their impacts, creating and implementing adaptive management programs and strategies to mitigate human/wildlife conflicts, public education, developing working relationships with local research organizations, and acting as a liaison between the county, state and federal wildlife agencies.

Mike Fargione manages Cary Institute’s natural areas and coordinates property access and outdoor public programs. Research interests include: local predator-prey relationships, interactions between human actions and wildlife populations, and finding ways to mitigate human-wildlife conflicts. Among his active projects are managing deer impacts on forests using habitat management and controlled hunting, using trail cameras to understand wildlife distribution and abundance, and investigating the ecological role of man-made nest boxes as wildlife resources.

Click here to read more and register for the event.