Category: Who’s blaming beavers now?

Beaver friends with benefits

heidi08 Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, City Reports, Creative Solutions, Environmental, Friends of Martinez Beavers, Who's blaming beavers now?, Who's saving beavers now? June 3, 2017

This has been a fairly auspicious week for beavers. Their benefits have been touted in the CA wine country, Illinois and now the UK. I hope all this good press doesn’t go to their heads. This fine offering is from science writer Roger Harrabin

Beaver return ‘benefits environment’

Beavers should be re-introduced to England to improve water supplies, prevent floods and tackle soil loss, a researcher says. New results from a trial in Devon show muddy water entering a beaver wetland is three times cleaner when it leaves.

The farmers’ union, NFU, warns that beavers brought back to Scotland have damaged fields and forestry. But Prof Richard Brazier, who runs the Devon trial, says farmers should thank beavers for cleaning up farm pollution.

Unpublished preliminary results from his tests for Exeter University showed that a pair of beavers introduced six years ago have created 13 ponds on 183m of a stream. The ponds trapped a total of 16 tonnes of carbon and one tonne of nitrogen – a fertiliser that in large quantities harms water supplies.

During heavy rains, water monitored entering the site has been thick with run-off soil from farm fields – but the soil and fertilisers have been filtered out of the water by the network of dams.

“We see quite a lot of soil erosion from agricultural land round here (near Okehampton),” he told BBC News.

“Our trial has shown that the beavers are able to dam our streams in a way that keeps soil in the headwaters of our catchment so it doesn’t clog up rivers downstream and pollute our drinking and bathing waters. “Farmers should be happy that beavers are solving some of the problems that intensive farming creates.

“If we bring beavers back it’s just one tool we need to solve Britain’s crisis of soil loss and diffuse agricultural pollution of waterways, but it’s a useful tool.”

16 tons of carbon and 1 ton of nitrogen! That’s pretty impressive, even if they do spell it with an E. It refers to the metric ton, which is actually bigger than ours. So that small trial beaver population is making a HUGE difference. It’s startling that they’re maintaining 13 dams, because that’s so much work. I assume the idea is diffusing the water force over many dams makes the threat to any single one less, and the repairs needed smaller. I wonder what our beavers would have done if they were given the run of the place and endless supplies of trees. The most we ever had was 5, but I’m sure if they had been allowed to flood out escobar street they might have advanced.

Of course it’s a ‘both sides’ article so it interviews Dr. Negative Nellie from pain in the arse university, too.

Another soil expert, Professor Jane Rickson from Cranfield University, is yet to be convinced about the multiple benefits of these hard-working, continental night workers.

She told BBC News any beaver dams must be “leaky” – so they don’t hold back large volumes of water that might be released all at once in an extreme flood event.

She agreed that in some places the UK was suffering a crisis of soil loss, and said new policies were urgently needed.

But, she said, beavers might reduce the river channel, increasing the risk of flooding – or, in areas of poor cover, they might remove vegetation, expose soil and thus increase erosion.

A spokesperson from the Environment Agency was also lukewarm about beavers, saying: “Natural and hard flood defences both have an important role in keeping communities safe – though introducing beavers does not form part of our approach.”

The authorities are wary of mass beaver re-colonisation of England, following the controversy over beaver re-introduction in Scotland – where they are now protected species after a trial by the Scottish government.

In Tayside, some land owners have angrily complained about beaver damage to commercial forests and fields, and others objected to the £2m cost of the trial.

Yes yes, beaver dams are leaky. It’s one of their great benefits since the water that passes through them comes out cleaner on the other side. And you are doing a very good job as the “might” patrol; thinking of all the harm that beavers might cause. There’s a really fun video on the site that I don’t think I can share here, although I’m still trying. Go watch it because it’s that good and short.

And of course a photo of a nutria/coypu instead of a beaver because hey, why the hell not?

Meanwhile we received word that we got our grants from both Kiwanis and the Martinez Community Foundation yesterday, so thank you both so very much and we are looking prepared for beaver festival 10. Planning meeting tomorrow and all is right on schedule!

The Johny Appleseed of beaver controversy?

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beavers and Birds, Beavers and water, City Reports, Environmental, Who's blaming beavers now?, Who's saving beavers now? May 30, 2017

St. Augustine of Hippo was one of the early Christian converts who went on to become a great Catholic theologian. He was a sinful young man raised by a devout mother who prayed for his conversion so often he was called “The son of so many tears“. Eventually the holy spirit persuaded him to read the letters of Paul who was also the subject of a dramatic conversion. He went on to become a great believer and defender of the church. He was known for his treatise on marriage, mortality and even the recommendation not to always take the bible literally. But he is most known for the rather embarrassing prayer of his youth which went something like,

“Oh Lord, make me pure, but not yet”

Which basically translates in a very human way to saying, ‘God I know chastity is good for my soul, but can’t it be for my body first just once please?’ And when I tell you more you will know exactly why St. Augustine sprung to mind recently.

Things on my end have been pretty focused on the upcoming beaver presentation in Marin that I mentioned yesterday. It’s especially great timing because I can plug the festival AND tie in with the push to bring back beavers in the county. I was asked way back in the winter to present by the VP who organizes the speaker series. No problem, I said.

Yesterday I received word that the powers that be do NOT support beaver reintroduction in Marin, and after reading my article ask please, that I don’t recommend it. Enter Augustine.

I replied that my talk would focus on what beavers did in Martinez and of course I think every Audubon everywhere should be doing everything it could to coexist with beavers, but that I had nothing to do with Dr. Meral’s push for reintroduction in Marin and wouldn’t mention it. (To be honest, I actually don’t think beavers NEED to be reintroduced, because I know of at least three incidents where they turned up in the forbidden county on their own and will undoubtedly do so again in the future.)

But for a dark moment I once again felt that familiar vice grip that I remember from my 90 days on the beaver subcommittee. “Don’t offend the wrong people by arguing with them, but somehow show them somehow that they’re wrong anyway!” Does beaver controversy follow me wherever I go, like the peanut character Pigpen’s dust cloud? Am I the Johnny Appleseed of controversy?

I’ll do what I can, of course to show that there are plenty of ways to live with beaver in almost any setting, and a host of benefits for doing so. Who knows what will happen? It might be hotter water than I was expecting, but that should make for good attendance and lively discussion. I started of course by looking up the president to see what I’ll be dealing with. Here she is talking about the importance of buying property to protect WETLANDS. Hey I know something that can help with that.

To Beaver or Not To Beaver?

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, Beavers elsewhere, Educational, Environmental, Who's blaming beavers now?, Who's Killing Beavers Now?, Who's saving beavers now? May 25, 2017

More silly mulling from the Scottish countyside: Should beavers be allowed or not? A reader on the Tayside group pointed out that this same argument could have been made 15 years ago, I say probably longer than that.

Beaver reintroduction – what’s the story?

Their reputation as strong swimmers and prodigious engineers is not an understatement. Their large incisors and clawed front feet enable them to construct dams and lodges that can extend for hundreds of metres, as well as burrows of up to 20 metres into the riverbank.

“Any species introduction, particularly if it has not been in this country for hundreds of years, can have a massive impact on the many benefits that the countryside delivers,” Mark Pope, an arable farmer from Somerset who has instigated numerous initiatives to provide habitat and food for birds and insects and encourage diverse plant species on his farm, said.

“In the case of beavers, the NFU has concerns about the damage to farmland and the landscape caused by their physical activities.” Mark, who is also chair of the NFU Environment Forum, added. “Farmers and the public must have the tools to manage the impacts beavers will have to farmland, the countryside, flood defences and urban areas.

“Beavers can add biodiversity, as well as the interest, enjoyment and socio-economic benefits they can provide to many people. What the NFU is very clear on is that in some locations there is a clear need to manage this species to minimise undesirable impacts on agriculture, forestry, inland waters and other land uses.”

There is increasing interest in the beneficial role beavers could bring to habitats. The natural activities of beavers could help to regulate flooding and improve water quality, if managed properly. The Devon trial on the River Otter, led by the Devon Wildlife Trust in partnership with Clinton Devon Estates, the University of Exeter and the Derek Gow Partnership, has been exploring the role of beavers in managing and creating wetland habitats, the impacts on water quality, and influence on water flow and flood risk.

Tolkein once wrote “Go not to the elves for council, for they will say both ‘No’ and ‘Yes’.” Mostly no, though.

On the other hand, beaver burrows near watercourses can weaken river embankments and flood defences. Material felled and gathered by beavers for dams and lodges can create flood risk downstream and block drains upstream. The potential consequences of this for farmland and the rural economy is a cause for concern.

It is estimated that the costs of the 2007 and 2013-14 floods on agricultural businesses alone were £50m and £19m respectively, not to mention the wider economic impacts on local employment, infrastructure and utilities and the damage caused to people’s homes and communities.

The knock-on effects can be wide-ranging. The loss of productive farmland, for instance, would have a detrimental effect on food production and supply.

The Scottish Beaver Trial was a five-year project between the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, the Scottish Wildlife Trust and Forestry Commission Scotland to undertake a trial reintroduction of beavers to Knapdale, Mid-Argyll. The trial concluded in 2014 and as a result the Scottish government is considering recognising the European beaver as a native species.

A change in the legal status of beavers raises additional concerns. This is because beavers have no natural predators in the UK so it is important that populations can be managed, particularly if they are present in extensive low-lying areas such as East Anglia, Wiltshire and the Somerset Levels where their activities could block field drains leading to waterlogging (known as ‘wetting up’) of productive farmland.

Clarification: Beavers might benefit us if they don’t kills us all first. “We killed off all their natural predators in the UK so there’s nothing left to kill them and their numbers will swell like taxes with national health”. Are there no otters? No bacteria? No vehicles in your land? Beavers just don’t get killed by predators you know. And honestly, why act like you want to explore an issue and ONLY speak to one farming fiend from the National Farmers Union?

Who’s going to list all the many benefits for fish, wildlife, birds and water storage that come with beavers? Who’s going to talk about how much you can learn about nature by watching them? Who’s going to say how much they improve the health and vitality of urban waterways?

We need a National Beavers Union!!!

“Are you a good witch? Or a bad witch?”

heidi08 Beavers and salmon, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, Creative Solutions, Who's blaming beavers now?, Who's saving beavers now? May 23, 2017

The “Beaver Patrol” in Juneau understands how beavers are important to salmon. It was started by our friends Bob Armstrong and Mary Willson years ago. But obviously beaver beliefs are still forming and changing up there, because the forest service isn’t so sure about them. The reporter still thinks they live in the dam, and even one of their volunteers needs to look up the word “Destructive” in the dictionary, I think.

Coho habitat destroyed by beaver dam dismantler

Last summer was a great year for coho salmon returns to Dredge Creek. Unfortunately, salmon redds in the creek below Dredge Lake have been negatively impacted by someone it appears was trying to help them, says the Beaver Patrol.

The “Beaver Patrol” is a group of volunteer Juneau naturalists and concerned citizens who have been working in the Dredge Creek and Dredge Lake area — U.S. Forest Service Land — for about five years. They and the Forest Service manage the dams and have improved salmon habitat in the stream, said member Chuck Caldwell.

Another factor helping Dredge Creek’s coho rearing? Beavers.

Caldwell had taken note of three different redds — nests of pebbles where salmon deposit their eggs — just above a beaver dam. A fourth was outside the main channel and needed a nearby dam to maintain its water depth. The destruction of the dam lowered the water and this winter that area froze, he said.

“He was tearing (the dams) out once or twice a week. Clearly he just hated beavers. He also wanted to dig in the stream to make a nice, deep channel. He dug through two of the redds,” Caldwell said.

The digging and the dismantling of the dams destroyed all the salmon redds he had observed in that area, Caldwell said.

In the first half of November, Beaver Patrol member Jos Bakker ran into and confronted the man when he was in the process of destroying a dam. The man doesn’t appear to have come back after that, but the damage was already done, Caldwell said.

The Beaver Patrol emphasizes beavers’ positive impact on salmon rearing.

“If you look back a couple of decades, people used to think that if you got the dams out, the fish could move back easier,” Caldwell said. “That’s not the limiting factor in the coho population. The limiting factor is having a habitat the juvenile cohos can live in.”

“By and large, it’s a safe bet that beaver dams do provide excellent coho rearing habitat,” Schneider said. “They can cause major problems for adult cohos to access fish habitat, and that’s probably what gets most folks in the public tempted to tear out dams. It has to be a fine balance, like anything else … In a normal setting, you would have these major flood events on occasion. It would rearrange them and keep them in check. You’re not going to get that in Dredge. On top of that, there are not normal predator levels that you would find in a normal wild setting.”

Dams’ impact on adult salmon in a setting like Dredge is something about which the Beaver Patrol and the Forest Service are not in complete agreement. Member Mary Willson says 90 percent of the time beavers are actually helpful to coho populations. Schneider disagrees.

When he and the cub scouts notch the dens, they use specific techniques and tools to ensure muddy debris doesn’t end up covering redds.

Beaver management does require a balance, Miller said.

It’s one of those interesting situations,” he said. “It’s true that habitat is being created, but at the same time, beavers are very destructive.”

In areas where beavers might create an aesthetic issue, the patrol has put a cloth around the trees that will keep the beavers from gnawing them, Miller said.

In my old days back before my time as a psychologist we used to call that “they’re good, they’re bad, they’re really good, they’re really bad” kind of messaging ‘schizophrenogenic’. Meaning if it kind of makes you crazy. Of course now they no longer think schizophrenia is caused by parenting BUT I would argue the term still applies to beavers. Just look at the dedication of folks in a very small area on both sides of the fence. Bob Armstrong even got the forest service to bring out Mike Callahan to talk about flow devices in 2009, but they never let him install one. The breadth of understanding of beaver benefits there is razor thin. But still a lot thicker than some places.

Here’s what Michael Pollock said to me in our podcast interview. “Does some particular beaver dam ever prevent some particular salmon from getting over at some particular time? Sure. But that’s asking the wrong question”.

Beaver dams are doing so much good for so many salmon it balances out.

Here’s my own unscientific variation: “Do people ever get hit by ambulances? Of course they do. Does that mean we shouldn’t have ambulances? Absolutely not.”

mendenhall — Beaver Dam at Mendenhall Glacier: Bob Armstrong

Dam Smugglers!

heidi08 stupid solutions, Urban beavers, Who's blaming beavers now? May 8, 2017

Here at beaver central we’ve seen beavers and their dams blamed for many things: flooding, power outages, drowning fish, ruined hospital records, giardiasis and homicide. But we’ve never seen this:

Estonia faces cross-border beaver problem

Estonia wants to clear beaver dams from its border with Russia to prevent smugglers and other illegal activity.

The PPA is tendering for a contractor to undertake the work, saying that it’s necessary “due to reasons related to the guarding of the EU’s external border and the prevention of smuggling”.

There is a degree of difficulty to the task which involves the State Borders Act, meaning that trees reaching the border must be cut on the border line, or “from the Russian shoreline without setting foot on Russian land”, ERR says. Who gets custody of fallen trees will be determined by discussions with local Russian officials, and work cannot start on dam clearances until agreements are in place.

On average, 30 beaver dams are removed from the border every year.

Estonia says that the beaver dams are a problem from a national security point of view, especially when it comes to guarding the European Union’s eastern border with Russia.

The verb “to smuggle” means to move goods illegally into or out of a country. So a smuggler is someone who does that. Now I’m a fairly creative woman, I can imagine a lot of things: like talking beavers, flying popes and trails of bread crumbs. But as hard as I try I can’t really imagine how beaver dams aid smugglers. Are the goods floated in the pond and then pulled over the dam? Does a smuggler bury them under the sticks until the patrol guard leaves and then pull them free? Are weapons hidden in the beaver lodge, just waiting for the right moment to cross?

The article doesn’t have any answers unfortunately. So we’re left trying vainly to understand how beaver dams create international disruptions. Maybe you have an idea? Feel free to send it my way. I’ll be happy to share the most creative beaver smuggling stories!

Update: Robin of Napa and Bob of Georgia are both smarter than me. They had the very obvious thought that the dams were used as bridges to cross into the country. Obviously waterways are often borders and dams cross them. Duh! I guess my huge blind spot can be attributed to the fact that it would never enter my mind to commit the sacrilege of walking on a beaver dam.

A little funny from my niece this morning who definitely knows how science and beavers amuse me.