Category: Recent Sightings

From the: It never rains, but it pours, beaver files!

heidi08 Beavers, Beavers elsewhere, Educational, Environmental, Recent Sightings June 10, 2015

Sometimes I go for weeks with nary a beaver report to etch together because the world is in a collective beaver lull. And sometimes there are way too may stories to write about. This morning is the second problem, but we have to start with a mind-blowing report from Saskatchewan, Canada. Which happens to be home to some of the most famous beaver intolerance in the Northern Hemisphere and was even featured as an example of beaver woes in the Canadian documentary on beavers last year. Its horrific report of beaver killing has spurred my most treasured columns (Saskat-CHEW-on-that!) and one of my most praised graphics (The exploding beaver population). Which is just back story to remind us that they really, really hate beavers. And makes this story all the more remarkable.

Moose Mountain Provincial Park Beaver Management Plan presented to public

Conflicting views on beaver management in the Moose Mountain Provincial Park have been issues for many years, but issues surrounding the actual workings of the watershed and Kenosee Lake are the underlying driving force of the concerns regarding water levels in Kenosee.

Phillips spoke to his research which pointed towards the park’s topography as being nearly saturated by beaver, with 2.13 colonies in every square kilometre which is a considerable density. However, despite there being numerous beaver in the area Phillips wasn’t hesitant to suggest a drastic beaver management plan, thus his recommendations following his studies included looking into flow devices in certain areas to prevent beavers from damming these spots and to refrain from much blasting of beaver dams until a hydrological study could be performed on the area.

Mind you, there is also a passage in the article that suggest beavers are to blame for their being less water in the lake. (Drinking too much?) But considering the source, this is a HUGE step forward from an area I wasn’t even sure had feet. Maybe this next article has something to do with it, because Alberta is just one province over. Dr. Hood is steadily persuading hearts and minds in Canada.

Beavers fulfill important role

Glynnis Hood is so passionate about beavers she has built a life around fighting for the enduring symbol of Canada.

“Whether you love them or not, the Canadian landscape was formed by the beaver,” said Hood, an associate professor at the University of Alberta’s environmental science and studies Augustana campus, at a recent meeting of the Bow Valley Naturalists.

In examining how beaver influenced some of Alberta’s wetlands in Elk Island National Park over a 54-year period, Hood and co-investigator Suzanne Bayley discovered the presence of open water increased up to nine times with the presence of beaver and their dams.

Climate models predict the incidence of drought in parts of North America will increase in frequency and length over the next 100 years and Hood’s research shows beavers will likely play an important role in maintaining water and mitigating the effects of drought.

Don’t you just love Glynnis? Sometimes I feel so frustrated, like a lone voice in the wilderness, and then she lands a report in the news and I just feel so relaxed. Like a child falling asleep in the back seat while their parents drive. You can bet that repeating this story over and over, and her compelling spot on the Beaver Whisperers documentary, and her smart book, have all made an impact on her neighbors.

Currently, Hood is working on an ongoing study in the Cooking Lake-Blackfoot Provincial Recreation Area, just south of Elk Island National Park.

They have installed 12 pond levelling devices, all of which are performing well to date. Three devices have been in since 2011 and have required very little to no maintenance and have withstood summer high water and winter warm spells.

Hood, along with Dr. Varghese Manaloor, an economist at the University of Augustana, have been supervising a student on a directed study this semester to work with cost-benefit data for these sites.

Hood said there are significant financial gains by using the pond levellers instead of the more traditional approaches, such as dam removal or removal of a beaver colony. In one case, she said, a device was installed adjacent to a popular park trail that was subject to regular flooding and closure over the past 10 years.

“The trail has remained open and dry since installation and the wetland and beaver colony remain intact,” she said.

What could possibly top that, you ask? How about this short report from England where a beaver was observed reintroducing himself.

Beaver seen swimming on coast

A BEAVER was sighted in Ramsgate sea this morning before swimming as far as Viking Bay.

Remember that beavers often use the ocean to get between rivers, and since they can close their eyes, ears, nose and throats, they can manage in salt water fairly well for a time. I’m thinking this beaver has read the many articles on the glacial speed with which the United Kingdom is moving towards beaver reintroduction, arguing about reintroducing dinosaurs because they were native once too, worrying about farmers, fisherman and flooding, and the beaver just said,

“Forget it, I’ll do it myself”

Safaris on your doorstep

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, Educational, pictures, Recent Sightings July 2, 2013

Jackson Hole Wyoming is 894 miles northeast of Martinez, and was once a gathering place for trappers. It is bordered by the Tetons and boasts fantastic wildlife, which makes it the location of one of the most popular ‘safaris’ in the nation. Jason Williams is a photographer, guide and founder of the Jackson Hole Wildlife Safaris that has drawn folks in winter, spring, summer and fall to some of the best moose, bison, bear, wolf, and ferret watching in the world.

And guess what else?

When Beaver build dams they slow down the current, flood the land upstream and cut down mature trees for food and material allowing sunlight to penetrate to the ground. This allows a variety of ground plants to grow where they would have otherwise been unable to grow due to lack of sunlight. When the beaver eventually abandon the area the dams will break down leaving behind a lush bottomland meadow and a much more diverse habitat than a mature forest. Without the beaver the trees will eventually move into the meadows, the roots will strengthen the stream banks leading to lower quality fish and bird habitat. In addition the shade from the canopy will disallow sunlight from supporting as much ground vegetation hence less forage for grazing animals like deer, moose, elk and bears.

This is a classic trophic cascade. Fortunately for the beaver and the bottomland species that rely on their work, chinese silk replaced the beaver pelt hats as the material of choice in the mid 1800′s. The fur trade collapsed due to a lack of demand and the beaver once again began to repopulate watersheds where they were trapped out of existence. Today you will see the tell tale signs of beaver habitation in most western watersheds. Since beaver are nocturnal they are best viewed in the evening as they come out to collect food, shore up their dams and patrol their territories.

If you are ready for a vacation this might be the spot for you. I mention this because, I just found out that I’ll be presenting at our own Safari West in Napa on the 17th of this month, talking to the families who are staying over night about the “beaver safari” that is here in Martinez before staying as their guest and taking a tour in the morning! Safari West has been a friend of the beavers since our second festival when I hunted down their founders and pitched a heart-warming tail (tail?) of how researchers in Botswana or Ecuador are biologists who first grew up interested in the nature of their own back yards. They subsequently paid for the materials to make the tiles on the Escobar bridge, and next year donated an overnight. Their tour and guest package is always our most popular item at the silent auction, so bring your check books this August.

In the mean time I am looking forward to sleeping in the company of giraffes, ostrich and Gnu’s.

And speaking of safari’s on your doorstep here’s a photo this morning from our own Cheryl Reynolds on her way to work in Cordelia: A mother otter with three pups!

fourotters — Mother Otter and Three pups: Cheryl Reynolds

A tale of two states

heidi08 Beavers, Beavers elsewhere, Creative Solutions, Recent Sightings June 15, 2013

I have always said that Washington State is the beaver-IQ capital of the world, and here’s a lovely reminder. I have been trying to chose the ‘best parts’ of this article to excerpt, but its entirely perfect so its hard to whittle down.

City eyes solutions to beaver-caused dam flooding

Beaver dams along the Deschutes River in property owned by Yelm, Olympia and Lacey are raising the water levels of the river and Lake Lawrence. The cities are currently looking at solutions that mitigate the impact to property owners while protecting the beavers.

Beavers on the property have historically built dams on the river, said Yelm City Administrator Shelly Badger. The cities can’t just go out and remove them, she said.

It wouldn’t make much sense to do so anyway, if beaver dams are removed, the beavers typically rebuild them, Winecka said. If the beavers are relocated, others move in.

Relocating strategies turn into “an ongoing project that will never end,” he said. “At some point it makes sense to use them … for ecological benefits.“They do have a place in the ecosystem and unfortunately there’s sometimes conflict with people.”

Beavers often create excellent habitat for a variety of species, he said. He said the beavers could help the salmon restoration taking place at the Deschutes farm.

Don’t you want to move to Washington right now? Honestly, I think I should be buried there. The article, which you should read in its entirety, goes on to discuss the futility of ripping out dams and the value of flow devices. And no, I didn’t write it. We love Washington.

For contast there’s this letter and response from Michigan. You can see that some folks on the ground are starting to get it, but the Department of Natural Resources still hasn’t a clue.

Wetlands destroyed with dam removal

The management of Fort Custer State Recreational Area recently made a destructive decision to remove a large beaver dam, which had been in place for years, on a little stream flowing out of Eagle Lake.

The more than eight feet long beaver dam had effectively created a beautiful and important wetland in a wild, undeveloped area north of Eagle Lake. This protected wetland was the home of numerous wild creatures.

Spring peepers and frogs filled the air with their interesting, unique songs. Blue heron, swans, geese, ducks and sand hill cranes, along with other numerous birds, nested among the reeds and along the shore of this large shallow lake. Fish and water creatures thrived in this special area that supported many plants, drawn to the moist environment.

Visitors who came to Fort Custer to swim, fish, hike, canoe, bike and picnic were treated to a beautiful, natural overview of this lovely wetland from the road. A hiking/biking trail took you around the lake and provided a close up look at the incredible engineering feat of the beaver’s stick dam.

This beautiful site is now gone, drained away and replaced by a large mud flat with dying water lilies and dead shellfish and plants. The wild creatures are also gone, their environment destroyed.

Joanna Learner

Beautiful letter Joanna, since Battle Creek is 10 miles away from Fort uster, I’m assuming you’re the artist featured in this article a while back.

: ^{One of Joanna Learner’s most recent works, completed this year, is called ‘Mother Nature’s Response to Global Warming.’}

Joanna Learner is an artist-of-all-trades.

The 73-year-old Battle Creek resident is an accomplished sculptor, painter, jeweler, photographer and potter. Much of her work centers on nature, which makes sense since despite living all over America, Learner’s home has always been the crossroads of art and nature.

I’m sorry about your wetlands and beavers Joanna, but very pleased that you wrote this letter speaking up about what was a capricious decision by a DNR that apparently misunderstands the words “Natural” and “Resources”. The paper was protective enough of their friends to give the powers that be a chance to respond to the letter before it was published, and run their rebuttal last. But still you made your point very well. Just remember, beaver advocates beware…don’t ever assume that the playing field is level.

Without knowing more, I can tell you that if that dam did fail naturally, it might put Dickman Road at risk. Additionally, I can also tell you the beavers have done a lot of tree damage on the north side of the road, and that may also be a contributing factor to the decision to remove the dam.

I would suggest you contact the manager of the Fort Custer Recreation Area to discuss your concerns, and I am sure he will listen, and also tell you the issues he is working with. Again, thanks for letting us comment before publishing your letter.

Larry Pio

President, Chief Noonday Chapter

North Country Trail Association

That’s right. The beavers needed to be trapped because they were eating trees. That almost never (always) happens. And we couldn’t wire-wrap them because it’s hard and looks icky and we just make trails through nature – we don’t actually protect it. If Joanna’s last name is “Learner” Mr. Pio’s first name must be “SLOW” because Michigan is obviously half a world behind Washington when it comes to understanding the trickle-down benefits of beavers. Still its a fine start and a rung on the ladder to better beaver understanding, so good work. Keep climbing.

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Last night’s Kitwatch 2013 was not what we hoped, but not without compensations. It was high tide and getting higher when we arrived. The pollen all rushed upstream and clumped into the eddy. This made me laugh when we were waiting. Doesn’t that pond turtle eye look like a velociraptor lurking in the muck?

The city has been a good sport and let the tree remain, and the beavers have been working on it and took a few branches while we sat there. It’s a big tree though, still living, and there’s a lot more to go.

The otter that visited on tuesday has obviously been hanging around all week and the beavers have gotten a little more used to him. There was no tail slapping but no still no kits until almost nine. We saw approximately three adult beavers, both using the overpass on the gap and the ‘underpass’ around the dam under the bank.

The little otter used the gap, the underpass AND the pipe to get over the dam. All my photos are blurry but you get the idea.

Every time the beavers approached the otter ducked into the filter of the flow device, where he and the fish could swim freely because the beavers were too big to come bother him. It reminded me of playing tag as a kid and breathlessly calling out “BASE”!

Just before 9:00, when it was too dark to film and the lights were reflecting in the water, a beautiful kit slipped through the underpass to work on the tree. Immediately voices raised up a register and we all said a unanimous “AWWWW”. We waited, but just one had come by the time it was too dark to stay. Obviously everything is right in beaver world.

Beavers: Marginally better than pollution

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, Environmental, Recent Sightings March 18, 2013

Apparently the best city based pre-beaver campaign isn’t education or widespread information about solutions. It years and years of horrible, toxic, pollution supplied by endless factories to multiple riverbeds in a region so that the river itself becomes so wretched and inhospitable to life that when hardy beavers actually move in, they we briefly welcomed as champions.

First the Bronx, then Chernobyl, and now this:

Yes, beaver making a comeback along Detroit, Rouge rivers

The return of the native creature was heralded in early 2009 after perhaps a century without seeing any evidence of beaver in Detroit. A beaver was spotted having built a lodge at the DTE Conners Creek power plant. He moved on during that summer, but in November of that year was spotted having returned with a family.

Now there is fresh evidence that the beaver are multiplying along several points of the Detroit and Rouge rivers and might be making a sustained comeback in the city, said John Hartig, a manager with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He said evidence of beaver has been found at the Conners Creek plant in Detroit, the River Rouge plant and other points.

“They could be expanding their range,” he said.

Ahhh how Nice. Okay, mark your calendars and set your clocks, because as encouraging as this article is I predict it will be a matter of months before we start reading stories about neighborhoods with blocked culverts and chopped trees. Folks are excited when beavers come BACK to an area because they assume it means they did very good things to make it possible. Hughlet Hornbeck once explained to me that the beavers coming back to Alhambra Creek was proof that EBRP had been doing the right thing for 50 years, for example.

That may be a little bit true. We may make efforts to stop ruining things and take the necessary steps to turn things around. But lets be honest and admit the beavers are the ones who actually make things better!

Then industrial pollution in the mid-20th Century made the Detroit River too toxic for beaver and many other species to return. The cleanup of the river in recent decades has seen many species making a comeback.

“This is one piece of evidence,” Hartig said of the latest beaver sighting. “But if you add in there the return of lake sturgeon, the return of lake whitefish, the return of walleye, the return of bald eagles, peregrine falcons, osprey, beaver, wild celery, it’s one of the most dramatic ecological recovery stories in North America.”

Beavers are still exciting enough along the Detroit River that the reporter does an excellent job researching their history and providing context. Go check out the article and read what good beaver reporting looks like. Enjoy it while it lasts though, because in the blink of an eye they’ll be reporting that gangs of four foot tall beavers cut down all the trees and caused tularemia.

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Also, this morning I was sent an recent dissertation looking at the genetic diversity of the American beaver population, which apparently is ‘dam’ ‘hardy. (Color me surprised!) I’m still gleaning to see if it addresses subspecies, but in the meantime you can check it out for youself online here.

And the newly named Dr. Karla Pelz Serrano should definitely be in touch! Beaver festival Arizona anyone?

From Barcelona to Benicia

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, Recent Sightings March 6, 2013

This morning I made a trip down to see how the beavers fared in the night. The water had topped the primary dam and the ducks were enjoying easy passage over the gap. Even the filter fence was invisible, and I assumed the little lodge they had built was flooded or washed away. Experience has taught me that beaver sightings on the morning after rain are rare, but I was surprised to see another couple there looking with binoculars at the sight. They had cameras and head lamps. They approached with curiosity.

“Are you looking for the beavers too” The man asked, with a latin-sounding accent.

I was watching some ripples in the annex at the moment and hoping they weren’t just ducks, which they turned out to be. I explained that I was but that the beavers could be hard to see after a rainy night and asked where they had come from and how they knew about them?

“We saw them on the internet” he answered. “We’re from Barcelona.”

No, I am not kidding. It turned out they had stayed in Marin last night and driven here in the morning because they wanted to see them. She was researching marmots in the Pyrenees, and they were both very interested in seeing beavers in the states. They had brought plaster to make a cast of their footprints.

When my head was done spinning to think that someone in Spain was reading our website and had come to see our beavers as a result, I explained that I maintained the site and had been following the beavers for 6 years. They were very surprised, and acted kind of like they were meeting a character from a novel. (Which I suppose they kind of were.) They knew all about the flow device, the controversy, and mom’s death.

He said there was controversy in Spain because some beavers had been introduced on the Aragorn river in Spain, but folks weren’t sure what to think about them because they were eating trees. (!) I talked to them about coppicing, and research showing that migratory and songbird populations increased because of beaver chewing. And all the new wildlife they would get as a result.

They said some biologists worried that this was the “wrong” subspecies that had been reintroduced, which I explained wasn’t a concern. I pointed them to the recent article on genetic testing of castor fiber subspecies which had identified only two real differences and nothing to worry about. I said thatour subspecies were pretty indistinguishable in physiology and behavior, and that they needed to focus on learning to solve problems.Tey said they’d send me photos of their visit and keep in touch.

After I came home I found that there is some confusion about that beaver introduction in Spain and whether it was deliberate, sanctioned or illegal. Nature Iberia website, for example, says

A small but growing numbers of beavers currently live along the River Aragon. They were introduced illegally, probably by a group of European beaver activists. The beavers began to flourish in what is prime habitat. A timid plan was begun in 2009 to try to control their expansion by live trapping. The EU gave its backing to the cull to avoid setting a precedent, which might open the door to illegal reintroductions of wildlife across Europe, not because these beavers have caused a lot of damage…the introduction of the animals was clearly illegal and irresponsible…

That sounded grim, but I was very cheered to read that thanks to a google translation escapade, the fur trade in Spain had involved “Shipping beaver PELLETS around the world”. Hahaha. And then I thought about Scotland, and the drama about the free beavers of the river Tay. Call me cynical, but sometimes people get confused about whether or not things belong. There are even folks who doubt now that they were ever native to Scotland. I looked around a little more and found this from our old friend Duncan Halley.

Population and distribution of European beavers (Castor fiber)

In 2003, beavers were reintroduced to the Ebro in Spain, with plans for further reintroductions to The Guadalquivir, Guadiana, and Tajo (Tagus) river systems (H. Lea, personal communication).

Doesn’t sound much like a secret criminal act to me. The Aragorn river is a direct tributary to the Ebre, see here. I suppose some crazy ecologists could have sneaked across the border and forced beaver upon the region, but I don’t suppose they’d talk about it to researchers do you? Besides we know beavers can make it a long way in salt water to find new territory and climb over pretty remarkable terrain, so I’m not even sure reintroduction would have been necessary.

Well, the point is that you have them NOW, and that’s a good thing. I told the earnest young couple to spend time educating themselves about the good that they do for birds and fish and water and climate change and learn how to deal with problematic behaviors when they arise. I told them to talk to their friends and colleages and teach folks what they need to know. Then sit back and let the beavers do what they do best.

Sometimes in life you wonder whether what you do makes a difference. It can be hard to keep going, and hard to sustain momentum. You wonder whether all the effort and energy you put into a project is really worth it, and whether in the grand scheme of things it matters at all. Maybe you should just leave this work to someone who’s actually trained for it. Does anyone even notice or care?

And sometimes, every now and then, you meet folks from Barcelona who came to Martinez to see the beavers.