Category: kits

Beaver goodness in New York

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, Creative Solutions, Educational, kits June 1, 2014

Let’s finish our weekend with this compassionate soul in New York. A concerned resident implored the city council for protection.

New Paltz asked to put up ‘beaver crossing’ sign on South Ohioville Road

Town Board members are being asked for a sign on South Ohioville Road warning drivers to watch out for beavers. The request was made during a Town Board meeting last week, when resident Thomas Gallo said the large rodents are crossing the highway to go between swamp areas.

“There’s a beaver family that lives somewhere over there,” he said.

“By my house there is an underground water drain that goes under the road through my property and across the Thruway,” Gallo said. “There’s a den 50 feet from the road right next to the underground pipe.

“They grow up, they come to my den, they cross the road to see the water, and they get hit by a car.”

You are a good man Thomas. I share your worry that beavers are so low to the ground only the most cautious driver will miss them. I remember in my childhood there was a passing thought that if children’s bicycles had weren’t so low not as many children would be hit by cars. For a while we all had tall flags on our bike to make them more visible, which I’ve often thought could help beavers by being installed on their tails. I’m not sure how we could attach them. Or how beavers would enter the lodge with them, but it’s a thought.

In the meantime I’ve saved the town of New Paltz the time and trouble and made them a sign. Feel free to borrow or share.

More gentle beaver news from the empire state. This from professor and author Susan Fox Rogers. Seems she was out kayaking on the Hudson River the other day, and was greeted by this heart-breaking visitor.

She knew enough to think he was lost, and none to happy about his dislocation. She spied a nearby lodge across the way and coaxed him into following the boat so she could bring him there.

I guessed it was lost. Across the channel rested a stick pile, a beaver lodge. I moved my boat to the middle of the channel thinking the little beaver might swim to me once again and this would get it closer to home. It did. And I had the foresight to turn on the video in my pocket camera. And sure enough, after it rounded the stern of my boat, the baby beaver swam off toward the lodge.

She’s a nice writer, and if you want to go read the entire piece check her blog out here. In the meantime lets hope that adorable baby was old enough to dive home or smart enough to smell his family inside the lodge and stay put until they woke up!

Everybody gets kits before us. No arrivals last night either, but a high tide and all the family members coming down from the primary dam. So maybe the kits were up there, which is puzzling to say the least. Those whacky beavers! Always keeping you guessing.

The certificate for Hornblower arrived yesterday, and I realized it will be good in 5 locations. If you’ve never celebrated a special occasion or brought a visiting relative to brunch under the golden gate, you really should do so soon. Better yet, bid on our certificate and save yourself some money while supporting beavers!

There really are beavers in Martinez!

heidi08 Beavers, kits April 14, 2014

I haven’t had the good luck of seeing a beaver since the Sunday before I went in the hospital. So it’s been nine whole weeks since I saw them in person. The longest absence ever. And the last couple of times I went down it was a ghost town with narry a beaver in sight. I started to think sad thoughts about them being gone, or using another habitat, or not feeling like Alhambra Creek was hospitable to beavers any more. My only consoling observation was that the primary dam has been lovingly maintained and was looking very tight.

But last night we saw 5 beavers!

They are definitely all living above the primary. When we got there one adult was working on the dam. Then two fast moving (barely yearlings) dashed over the primary and down to the secondary where they fished around for goodies, argued over who got what with audible whining, and did a little haphazard work.

This rough housing on the dam must have got mom’s attention, because she showed up next, taking a mouthful of branches to the gap, then sitting right next to the selfish one and daring him to try that with her. Which he didn’t. They touched noses and then she swam off with him following right behind. Only to each return with huge balls of mud which they carefully pushed onto the dam in tandem. This modeling sparked about four more trips to the dam with mud, even without mom to supervise. Still, like most young teenagers on the job, they were easily distracted by anything shiny.

Their somewhat more haphazard dam shows a little work has been done since the last rain. Obviously all those branches that wash down the creek in flooding get put to good use. Watching mom and our new yearlings work last night we realized how fast this could all happen.

I can’t tell you how normal and cheerful it felt to them, and how utterly reassuring it was to see mom in loving attendance. I realized the three toddlers we watched emerge last year are now safely in their tweens and well on their way to adulthood. That’s 19 more beavers in the world because of US. And probably more born right now tucked away in the lodge that we just can’t count until they emerge.

In case you can’t tell, I was inspired. You just have to watch this.

Welcome to the ‘hood!

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beavers elsewhere, Creative Solutions, Environmental, kits October 17, 2013

I have very exciting news for you today, but first a very thorny question that has plagued me half the night. What is wrong with me? Why are my powers of persuasion so completely lacking? I’m referring, of course, to the vote you didn’t cast yesterday for Beaver Whisperers. Where did I go wrong? Was it my sales pitch? Our website stats tell me that on any given day some 600 people are reading this site, and I see 40 of you went and voted. That means I completely failed to persuade 560 people who ostensibly care about beavers. What is the matter with me?

You can vote until Friday, its super easy and you don’t have to register, and technically you’re not voting not for the thing you haven’t seen yet but for the dam cam you CAN see any time you wish. Maybe I didn’t implore enough. Maybe I’m too bossy. Maybe you were busy with the carpool and the cable bill, but please go vote. If it wins the CBC is way more likely to do another beaver project down the road, and more people will learn how good beavers are. We all want that, right?

Alright, now speaking of the CBC there’s a bright and shiny new beaver website on the block. It’s cleverly called “Leave it to beavers : watershed stewardship”. It’s a joint venture by the Ann & Sandy Cross Conservation Area (ASCCA) and the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation. Seems they bit the bullet and undertook a beaver relocation a while ago onto their vast conservation land and are using students and citizen science to keep track of the difference it is making. You can practically still see the price tag on the websites involved, shining with their resident Glynnis Hood, but their teacher section has nothing in it and can you believe they do not mention the valiant effort of Martinez or Worth A Dam at all? Well, I’ll do what I can to change that. In the mean time, welcome to the ‘hood!

(Pun intended.)

Now onto the exciting beaver news! Last night was action packed at the dam. The water was clear and you could see the lovely webbed feet of the kits, junior and mom. The third dam has been built up considerably, and its practically wider than the secondary now. Obviously the beavers have a vision for their habitat that they haven’t included me in.

Bring a beaver to work day 008 — Third Dam

That’s our kit from last year. Isn’t he turning out lovely? How much do you wanna bet that third dam is mostly his work? The kits were in fine form and eager to follow Jr around doing everything he did. We probably saw all three, but one at a time so its hard to be sure.

We have one kit that is still very much a baby, not wanting to do more grown up things like his siblings. In case you’re not sure what it looks like when a kit acts like a baby, watch him eat.

Mom came out and went straight to work on the secondary dam. That is definitely HER responsibility and she takes it very seriously. She swam around with one of the kits a bit to make sure they were interested.

Then Heidi put her camera away, satisfied with working beavers well on their way to a mature family. The couple beside us we had met at Wildbirds. She tabled for Audubon and we were busily chatting away when we saw one of the kits come up beside mom and plop some mud onto the dam where she was working. The kit dove and got some more. Then paddled away and came back with a stick to add in its place. Even when Mom swam away, satisfied that the leak was patched, that kit kept working.

5 months old and well on his way to being a real beaver!

Beaver Reunion

heidi08 Beavers, kits, Video September 2, 2013

Last night there was a fortuitous reunion of Worth A Dam members and beavers aplenty. The dam was looking restored and without right angles, freshly mudded and the tide was nice and low. Some folks had come all the way from Novato to do a little beaver watching and were well-rewarded for their efforts.There was ample time for closeups and lovely glimpses of kit activity.

And if that makes you wish you were there, this might help. Never mind the train noises, I’m betting you will feel peaceful when you watch this:

Cheryl was avidly hoping for her first photo of the three kits together. It has been hard getting them to all be doing the same thing at the same time close enough to fit into a single camera frame. Last night she was not disappointed.

three together — 2013 Kits- Photo Cheryl Reynolds

Pretty soon an older beaver came out to see what they were up to. Junior and Mom made an appearance. Then a beaver we weren’t sure was around any more. This is one of our 2010 kits all grown up. When mom died she left one that was smaller (Reed) and two that were the same size (The Bookends). We unkindly used to call this particular beaver the “Useless Bookend” because he never ever helped with the dam in any way. I had wondered whether she/he was still around, but I’m starting to think this beavers will never disperse. He or she’s obviously tolerated though, and this year I did see him actually work on the dam a couple times.

When he made his unexpected appearance last night there were FOUR beavers on the dam at once.

Call me a traditionalist but when “Uncle U” showed up I couldn’t help thinking of this from the “Loyalist Cemetary” in New Brunswick.

As its centerpiece, the fountain features four bronze beavers building their lodge. The beavers are the work of world-renowned British sculptor Michael Rizzello, O.B.E. (Order of the British Empire).In 1785 a coat of arms was chosen for the new City of Saint John. One of the symbols chosen for the newly created crest was the beaver. The beaver has come to symbolize the spirit of hard work and innovation and has been used as a recurring theme in the renovated Old Burial Ground.

Nice fountain! Think they might have room for an American at this cemetery? Just curious.

Oh and since the Novato people got their wish and Cheryl got her wish and several families with small children got their wish, the beavers decided to give Heidi her wish too. Turn your sound UP to here these two kits greet mom, who’s off camera to the left.

It’s beaver magic in the late summer. Maybe you should stop by tonight and catch some of your own.

pulling kits — Kits in tow: Photo Cheryl Reynolds

Indiana Interests

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beavers elsewhere, Creative Solutions, kits August 25, 2013

The only thing I remember reporting about Indiana and beavers (aside from the Marion lab story where I was delightfully wrong), is a report from the state fair where they were proudly offering “beaver on a stick“. (Ugh!) It has not exactly been a shining beacon of beaver progressive thought. In fact every state it happens to border has a very nearly abysmal beaver record, so beavers obviously need to inspire disciples there. Well, maybe this is a start.

Beaver trapping in Big Walnut Creek sparked conflict

This issue became clear when, last December, a local trapper set up beaver traps in Big Walnut Creek, sparking opposition from disappointed University faculty and staff members.

The unanticipated backlash provoked Nature Park Ranger Brien Holsapple to address the trappers, who decided to remove the traps in order to prevent any further controversy or conflict.

Harms then mentioned the trapping incident to English professor, Ellen Bayer. Bayer, who was troubled by the news, decided to contact Holsapple as well.

“For the previous couple of months, my wife and I would go hiking a lot in the Nature Park,” Harms said. “We had seen beavers…and a dam was starting to be built.”

Harms thought that seeing the beavers behaving naturally was “kind of cool.”

Hurray for Doug! And Ellen! And Mr. Holsapple for deciding to listen instead of react indignantly! This is a great story of folks starting to think about beavers in a new way and I wrote everyone of them with problem-solving tools just in case their good cheer changes when things get harder. In the mean time, it’s very good news for beavers in Indiana. But be careful, Doug. I seem to remember a resonable person I once knew that liked to take walks and watch beavers just because they were ‘kinda cool’. You’ll never believe what happened to her.

“I guess I’m just glad that when people raise a concern, it’s possible to not only have immediate response,” Bayer said, “but also to have the campus body’s input taken seriously.”

Holsapple also expressed his appreciation and encouragement for this kind of communication to continue in the future.

“Without a doubt, I appreciate the students and the faculty’s input and I received a lot of it – some good, some bad – but don’t ever hesitate,” Holsapple said. “This is our park.”

The beaver incident and the way it was dealt with demonstrated the constant need for adjusting to the world’s changing environment, even on such a small scale of beavers in the park.

Maybe this means there’s hope for the next Indiana State fair?

A lovely photo from Cheryl this week. It was taken near the Creek Monkey wall where dozens of admiring onlookers watched. The photo demonstrates that kits have no fear and rely on responsible humans to do the right thing and remind them that they are wild animals. (Which, if you’re ever approached in a similar fashion, means making noise or clapping so that they are startled off. Clapping sounds like a tail slap and they know exactly what that means!) It happens every year, with similarly adorable results, but it always worries us a little. For now, take a deep breath and enjoy!

kit forage — Beaver kit foraging – Photo Cheryl Reynolds

Isn’t that lovely? His nose is really getting bigger. Not a little snippet anymore. Here’s a video of a similarly fearless approach in 2010. The kit was a little younger because they were orphans and unsupervised, but same general idea.