featured – Page 9 – Worth A Dam

International Beaver Day – From NY to AZ

heidi08 Beaver-themed merchandise, Beavers elsewhere, Creative Solutions, Educational, Environmental, featured, Festival April 7, 2014

From Beavers:Wetlands and Wildlife

April 7 was chosen as International #BeaverDay because it is the birthday of pioneering naturalist and wildlife advocate Dorothy Richards. She was born on this day in 1894 in Little Falls, NY and founded Beaversprite Sanctuary just upstream near Dolgeville, NY. She lived well into her 90s, and she would have turned 120 this year. You can order a copy of her inspiring autobiography, “Beaversprite: My Years Building an Animal Sanctuary,” from BWW’s website.

Nice! A great day to remember Dorothy and the good work beavers do. Of course, when I see reminders of beaver day I honestly think to myself, “Just a day?” Our beavers celebrated Beaver day by not showing up last night OR this morning. I’m sure there are many, many cast parties for them to attend, but a little visit would have been polite.

It was rumored into my ear that the trailer for the beaver believers movie would be released today. Sadly, there is nothing so far. I imagine Sarah on the floor in her film closet with a pencil behind her ear buried in Final Cut making last minute changes. Maybe later today? Until then enjoy this lovely film from Arizona of Walt Andersen from Prescott University. I think Walt needs to be a Worth A Dam friend very soon.

BS With Highest Honors, Wildlife Biology, Washington State University, 1968

MS, Wildlife Biology, University of Arizona, 1974

PhD Candidate, Resource Ecology, University of Michigan, 1976 (all but dissertation)

Walt is an expert in field identification of plants and animals, in teaching ecological concepts and natural history, and in group dynamics. He has written manuals for tour guides and safari guides for clients. He co-founded the West Butte Sanctuary Company and founded the Sutter Buttes Naturalists, which evolved into the Middle Mountain Foundation in the Sutter Buttes of California. He was one of the pioneers of ecotourism in the US and internationally (led first US ecotourism trip to national parks of Brazil, first trip to Madagascar for major donors of the World Wildlife Fund, etc.). He also has experience with publishing and is a compulsive and detail-oriented editor. In addition, he is a wildlife painter and illustrator and has published hundreds of photographs in many places. He loves using his images and words to interpret nature for audiences of any size.

Best. Headline. Ever.

heidi08 Beaver-themed merchandise, Beavers elsewhere, Beavers or Social Ambasadors, Creative Solutions, Educational, featured February 19, 2014

Senators seek plan to help bring back the beavers and protect wetlands

Wildlife biologists contend beavers could be the most low-tech, inexpensive answer that drought-plagued New Mexico has for storing up precious water and rescuing dwindling wetlands— but some of the animals are still killed every year by people who consider them nuisances.

The state Senate is considering a memorial sponsored by Sens. Tim Keller, D-Albuquerque, and Bobby Gonzales, D-Taos, asking several agencies to develop a statewide beaver-management plan to rein in conflicts between property owners and unwanted animals and to support populations where beavers are needed. Senate Memorial 4 passed the Senate Rules Committee Thursday and is scheduled to be heard next in the Conservation Committee.

Senators promoting beavers! Be still my heart! A state-wide beaver management plan to address both unwanted beavers and needed beaver populations. That sounds as much like music to my ears as any Mahler symphony. The beaver offers a real solution to the dried soils of climate change, but it’s always the last place people are willing to look for answers. Can we try pumping? Can we try seeding? Can we try buying water from another state? No? You mean we really have to try those icky beavers?

Yes. Yes, you do.

“I’d like to see New Mexico craft an intentional beaver-management plan like Utah has,” said Bryan Bird, Wild Places Program director for the Santa Fe-based nonprofit WildEarth Guardians. “It would be a solution to a lot of problems. Right now, there’s no logic to how we manage beavers.”

Beaver dams hold back streams and create ponds. Those ponds store water, create wetlands, recharge aquifers, support wildlife habitat and slow down floods, reducing erosion, wildlife biologists say. About 82 percent of the state’s streams on public land could support beavers, according to a recent wetlands habitat study Bird coordinated, which was funded by the New Mexico Environment Department.

Folks are started to get interested in the relationship between the water-savers and our rapidly dwindling water. I never heard my KGO interview on the topic but my uncle did, so I know it’s out there. I’ll be talking on Fur-Bearer Defender radio about the relationship today. It’s a happening time to be a beaver advocate, and I’m just trying to keep up.

Without beavers, the ponds that helped store up water on many stream systems dwindled, according to another recent study on the ecological benefits of beaver dams, conducted by New Mexico State University researchers. The study found only 40 active beaver dams on streams on public lands in the state in 2013, according to Jennifer Frey, an associate professor and one of the study’s authors. She said beaver were “functionally extinct” in the state because “they are so sparsely distributed that they are not able to perform the vital ecosystem services that would improve the health of our streams.”

I’m so excited this is even being DISCUSSED at the policy level in New Mexico. What’s wrong with California? There is even a comment about hyporheic exchange, which makes me feel a little faint. March on New Mexico and bring us to a new way to think about beavers. Since the Taos trading route did a massive amount of damage to the population, you owe it to them!

A cheerful donation arrived yesterday from our friends at Vancouver Bamboo. Liana donated two bolts of organic animal print fleece with beaver, moose, eagle and wolf silhouettes. Vancouver Bamboo, and it’s sister company, Kinderel, are a Greater Vancouver based companies specializing in organic fabrics and babywear. The company was launched in 2008 on the belief that parents should have the opportunity to raise their babies without products stuffed with dangerous chemicals.

I just know someone’s grandma is going to make them the coolest hoody or sleep set! Thanks Liana for your generosity and support. I’m so happy that you were willing to donate your unique fabric for beavers.

Chumps with Pumps

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beavers elsewhere, Educational, Environmental, featured September 11, 2013

Beaver being blamed for water crisis in Depoe Bay

A pump station at Rocky Creek that supplies Depoe Bay with most of its raw water was disabled after a beaver destroyed a plywood dam at the site, wreaking havoc with the pump’s intake. Water from the pond is pumped about a mile north to the city’s reservoir, which fell three feet after the pump’s failure.

Sure. That seems likely. Because you know how beavers like to destroy plywood and wreak havoc with pumps. I mean its not like it could possibly be the responsibility of the fine employees at Depoe bay who let the water fall by 36 inches before anyone bothered to check what was causing it. I’m sure there aren’t gauges or sensors or anything. So how could they possibly know?

Speaking of wild decisions, Martinez beavers were invited to the zoo yesterday. The Oakland Zoo does a brown bag lunch series for the keepers and members with animal speakers from around the community. Guess who will be on the venue for November?

Looks like we made the big leagues!

heidi08 Beavers, Educational, Environmental, featured, Festival August 7, 2013

Celebrating one of Nature’s Greatest Engineers: The Martinez Beaver Festival

As someone who works to get kids connected to nature and the outdoors, it was heartening to watch this group rush from one side of the bridge to the other to follow the swimming beaver, and shout in an enthusiastic voice usually reserved for a Justin Bieber sighting, “There he is!” And we adults were shouting right along with them.

Most of the “eager beaver” (sorry-I could not resist) watchers had attended the sixth annual Beaver Festival that afternoon in the area next to the creek affectionately known to locals as “Beaver Park.” Worth A Dam, the non-profit that hosts the event, assembled over forty area wildlife groups to help celebrate one of nature’s best engineers. A documentary film company, Tensegrity Productions, even filmed the festival for inclusion in their series, “The Beaver Believers.”

“We were amazed by the turnout, and heartened to see so many people interested in our resident beavers. Lots of people learned yesterday how beavers are good for creeks and wildlife,” said Heidi Perryman, President & Founder of Worth A Dam.

That’s right. The Martinez Beavers are National Wildlife Federation material now. Beth Pratt the author of one of the Wildlife Promise blogs came to the festival and stayed for the evening beaver viewing, where she was delighted by the behavior of both the beavers and the humans. You really should go read the whole thing. That’s the National Wildlife Federation. Wow! Wait until we make the calendar! I can’t think of a bigger compliment for all our hard work, but give me time. I’m sure I can up with something. She even made a movie of what she saw that night.

If you want another view of the day, check out the excellent photos from Ron Bruno who was helping his wife Lory with the silent auction. Enjoy!

Charming in every way

heidi08 Beavers, featured, Festival July 28, 2013

The charms for the Keystone Species Activity arrived yesterday, and they’re another amazing job from Mike Warner at Wildbryde. Beautiful and generous as there are extras of everything. Children can earn charms for free with the help of Safari West Junior Keepers, and our stalwart volunteer Erika will help put everything together and make it into a necklace at the linking station. Check out our new beaver and water drop design! This year we are taking pity on forlorn adults and letting them participate for a pittance of 10 dollars. I can’t wait to see visitors getting quizzed on why beaver matter. If you want to study ahead you can look here.

And as if that isn’t exciting enough, there are new splendors from our friends from Whitman college, this time with Sherri Tippie. They are heading for Martinez next and their podcast might be describing the festival and you!