Mendenhall of Fame

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beavers, Friends of Martinez Beavers, Who's saving beavers now? December 20, 2014

I first became aware of Bob Armstrong of Juneau, Alaska when I read about his ‘beaver team’ back in 2008. He was using volunteers to wipe out the troublesome beaver dams that flooded the trails at the state park so the beavers wouldn’t need to be trapped. (Very frustrated but lucky beavers!) I was able to introduce Bob to Mike and he was able to get the rangers to pay for him to come out and do a complete assessment of the situation. Along the way Bob and his colleague Mary Wilson published a beautiful book of the Mendenhall Glacier Beavers, which he was kind enough to donate to the auction at the festival many times.

Suffice to say that because of Mike’s advice Bob’s beaver team finally got a break, the trails were protected and those hard working beavers finally got to have a dam. Lory actually met Bob when she went to Alaska and we’ve been in touch all along. Yesterday he sent me word that his book was going up online as a pdf and sent me the link. You can imagine how excited I was to hear it! I put a permanent link on the left margin but you should really go check it out now.

Screen shot 2014-12-19 at 3.08.14 PM — Click to view

We were eager to study all the details like what the beavers ate and how they lived. I love his photo of the beaver dam at the glacier so much it has been my screen saver for 5 years, and I don’t think I will part with it ever. It looks to me like those beavers know even when things are hard that with a little effort anything is possible.

mendenhall — Mendenhall Glaciar Beaver Dam – Bob Armstrong

He also has been working with an underwater cam and recently found the perfect spot to install it. This is a beaver entering the lodge under the ice. Just think how lucky our beavers are!

Beaver Entering Lodge Under the Ice from Bob Armstrong on Vimeo.

Be a BRAT!

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, Creative Solutions, Educational, Environmental, Friends of Martinez Beavers, Who's saving beavers now? December 8, 2014

Joe Wheaton’s BRAT (Beaver Restoration Assessment Tool) tool has been successfully applied in Utah, Oregon, Washington, Colorado and New Mexico. He was one of the very first respectable professors to support this website. And we recently had a wonderful argument about the difference between being a ‘beaver advocate’ and a ‘beaver benefits advocate’. (You can guess which one I am.) Wonderful because Joe listened and heard my point of view and understood it, and then it turned out that the thing I was worried about didn’t even happen and we were both relieved!) I was surprised to stumble across this on youtube, and you’ll probably enjoy it.

I was especially happy with the sections on stream incision and dam washouts still restoring aggredation, and the fish research from the work they’re doing with Michael Pollock at John Day. Here’s a happy take away that you can employ to silence any annoying fisherman who objects to beavers. The tall one represents beaver ponds.

You can totally tell how old this film is by how long Mary’s hair is. Get your ruler.

Town Rallies to Save Beavers in Connecticut

heidi08 City Reports, Creative Solutions, Educational, Environmental, Festival, Friends of Martinez Beavers, Who's saving beavers now? December 7, 2014

Essex Beavers Will Live Another Day

Thanks to an outpouring of opposition from local residents at the Dec. 4 Essex Conservation Commission meeting, the beaver family that has currently taken up residency at the Viney Hill Brook Park, will not, as originally—and controversially—decided by the commission, be trapped and drowned.

Upwards of 150 residents, young and old, filled the meeting room at the Town Hall, ready with written statements and heartfelt speeches about why the beavers should be allowed to live freely at the park
“The beavers were here before people came in; it’s more their land than ours,” said 11 year-old Jack Simon who attended the meeting with his mother Laura Simon, a representative from the United States Humane Society.

The elder Simon explained that she would be more than happy to work with the town to come up with a viable solution that doesn’t involve trapping the beavers.

“There are simple alternatives such as wrapping the trees and painting the trees,” Simon said. “These are great community service and boy scout projects.”

This is just the kind of story we love best to hear at beaver central! John Ackerman was a resident who started asking questions on the beaver management forum a while back. I gave him all the advice and inspiration I could, but honestly, I needn’t have bothered. John is apparently adept at being creative and engaging on behalf of beavers all by himself!

“I think we should let the beavers do what they do best, build dams and create wetlands,” said 13 year-old Essex resident Jake Klin. “Viney Brook swimming hole was a mistake for humans, but great for the beavers. Please don’t drown the beavers.”

“I personally would like to see the beavers stay. I think they can be lived with,” said former first selectman and current State Representative Phil Miller.

“Instead of being negative about the beavers, why don’t we see them as an opportunity for education? They are a keystone species in Connecticut. We should be working with them not against them,” said resident Megan Schreider, who works at the Denison Pequot Nature Center in Mystic. “This town instilled in me my love of nature growing up and I hope it continues to that for future generations of children. Keeping the beavers alive is one way to do that.”

When I read something like that I am so excited I can hardly stop grinning. The town will bring in Mike Callahan to review the situation and make recommendations. And public works will start wrapping trees. Congratulations John and the people of Essex! You did something extraordinary and should be enormously proud of yourselves. I almost wish Martinez could go back in time and save our beavers all over again! Fantastic work. The meeting wasn’t filmed or photographed unfortunately, but I’m sure this is what it looked like.

Now it’s bird count morning! Tom and Darren will be busy in the field today with the first of their two highly successful bird counts for kids. If you miss this one, you can still catch the 18th. In the meantime if you need to remember who they are the photo from the beaver festival might help. Tom and Darren have helped us get our footing every step of the way, They have made sure to include us on many of their ground-breaking events, the Duck Stamp art show, the Optics and Nature fairs. the celebration of the wilderness act in California. Tom and Darren won the John Muir Conservation award last year, and have been invited to Canada and Washington D.C. to implement their ideas. we couldn’t be prouder of them or their friendship

Christmas Bird Count for kids

Calistoga families looking for a fun, outdoor activity that doesn’t involve a ball, but does involve a little math and education, may want to consider the Christmas Bird Count for Kids this winter.

There will be two nearby opportunities for citizen scientists to take part in the National Audubon Society’s Annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC). On Sunday, Dec. 7, a CBC will be held at Connolly Ranch in Napa, and on Sunday, Jan. 18, a CBC will be held at Sonoma Community Center in Sonoma.

Tom Rusert and Darren Peterie of Sonoma Birding launched Christmas Bird Count for Kids (CBC4Kids) in 2007.

Asked and Answered

heidi08 Environmental, Festival, Friends of Martinez Beavers, Who's saving beavers now? November 30, 2014

I came across this yesterday for the first time and was immediately intrigued. Daniel Dietrich is a professional wildlife photographer and NPS volunteer who has started this safari to help determined visitors from all over the world get the most out of their Pt. Reyes visit. All day Safari’s are 10 hours from sunrise to sunset and include pickup, lunch, water, and all the photography advice you will need to capture the views. They aren’t cheap either. A full day safari for two will cost you 595.00. Which is still a lot cheaper than a trip to Africa, and is sure to leave you with a mantelpiece full of memories.

So you guess what I did.

I wrote Daniel about the animal missing from the Marin landscape and mentioned that we were working hard to bring it back so he could photograph it soon. Then told him about our beaver festival and the silent auction we use to fund it. I asked if he’d think about donating to the silent auction at the festival. He wrote back enthusiastically that he had heard of the festival and wanted to photograph our beavers soon. He would love to support the work we were doing, but was mindful of his expenses and new business. He wasn’t sure if he could donate as much as a safari but wanted to help. I told him I thought a 2 for 1 deal would still be hugely popular with this particular crowd and he said for sure he could do that, maybe more.

Now it’s up to you to save enough over the upcoming 8 months to bid on this Safari and make yourself a part of this immortal landscape. Pt. Reyes is a magical place and the rich loamy soil practically hums when you walk across it. If it doesn’t need beavers I can’t imagine a place that does.

The other thing I did yesterday was write the photographer from Ohio, Scott Stolensberg, and tell him I loved his photograph in the YP News. I asked for permission to use it. Let’s hope he says yes because I really like this.

noplants — Beaver photo: Scott Stolensberg. Image: Worth A Dam

Last night, on the footbridge, I loved you best of all!

heidi08 City Reports, Creative Solutions, Educational, Environmental, Festival, Friends of Martinez Beavers, kits, Who's saving beavers now? November 16, 2014

I love her, in the springtime

And I love her in the fall,

But last night, on the back porch

I loved her best of all!

These shocking lyrics reflecting the moral depravity of our youth were published in 1923, some 89 years ago, before video games and ‘R’ movies. Maybe the fact that our house had already been around for a quarter of a century before the song was recorded had something to do with why, when I went to see the beavers last night, this was the soundtrack I heard in my head.

You see, our kit, (the 2014) model, has been living at Ward Street since August. And I’ve been getting more and more worried about his truant little runaway self. I talked with our experts, who had not seen it before but told me not to worry, advice impossible to follow. Beavers are very social animals, and they need face time with their parents learning beaver things for upwards of 24 months before they’re ready to hitch off on their own.

So guess what I saw from the footbridge last night, with Lory and Jon?

Our twentieth kit, climbing on mom’s tail, crunching on snacks, with 2 or three other beavers! (Maybe even dad?) Swimming, chewing, whining and acting like his little kitself again! I can’t tell you how much lighter our three moods were as we walked eventually back to our cars. The beaver family is together and everything’s right with the world.

Now that we’re all in good moods, I will show you this treat that I stumbled upon yesterday. Look who has a new website! Now there are three great beaver resources to share with folks who want new ways to solve problems!

We are a company dedicated to protecting our land and infrastructure, as well as allowing for creative remedies that improve habitats and end wasteful killing and spending. Our technology and practices are state-of-the-art, and have been employed domestically as well as internationally to mitigate the growing problems presented by the beaver population.

Finally! Skip Lisle’s website has hit the internet(s) running! Complete with great information and awesome photos showing off his skill. Go explore the sight, its lots of fun. I couldn’t be happier, although it was a little surprising to find this:

Skip Lisle offers that rare combination of “can-do” competence, creativity, and courtesy. He ably tamed our beavers with promptness and professionalism. Our California town, Martinez, still fondly remembers the man from Vermont, and his solution to save our Downtown!

Mark Ross

Vice Mayor

Martinez, California, USA

A testimonial from Mark Ross and nothing whatsoever from Worth A Dam? I suppose a vice mayor is slightly better advertising than a child psychologist, but it’s silly to overlook the beavers’ de facto press secretary. Well, the cat’s outta the bag now, I made sure everyone saw this yesterday, its on our beaver links, and in the future I will make sure that everyone knows your skills have a great website to promote them!

Too much good news?Guess what arrived in the mail yesterday. Approval from the Martinez Community Foundation for our grant application for the festival VIII art project! They paid 100% of the amount requested. No fooling, money from Martinez, for the beaver festival. I’m still pinching myself.

Thank you Martinez Community Foundation for helping us teach children about ecosystems at the beaver festival! And thank you artist FRO Butler who will be doing the lion’s share of the work, prepping and painting the canvas, purchasing the materials, and supervising the eager artists. I can’t wait till the whole thing comes together and we can use it at our displays in the future!