Category: Urban beavers

WHAT’S FUNNY ABOUT THAT? I DON’T GET IT.

Well it’s April now, are you happy? That means grant applications are due and maps for the festival have to be decided on. All winter we idled under our fuzzy comforters thinking summer would never get here, and now it’s just around the corner!

Eek!

I guess I am an outlier, but the one April Fool’s article I read on beavers yesterday seemed perfectly unfunny to me. In fact every word could have been written truthfully about Martinez. Just between you and me, I have a dream that someday it will be sound advice for all cities.

See if you don’t agree!

Beavers could come to Watford in green scheme

Watford’s pond could be the centre of a groundbreaking scheme to bring wildlife to the town centre. Under proposals to ‘re-wild’ The Parade, a colony of beavers could be introduced to the pool as part of a renewable forest-marsh ecosystem.

The ‘Big Beaver’ scheme is being mooted by environmentalists as a way to offset the increasing urbanisation of the town centre. The forest would act as a ‘green lung’, while the beavers would act as its natural stewards, managing the woodland as part of an ‘urban wilderness’.

Watford is a posh suburb of London, acclaimed for it’s recently finished “parade” which is a cross between an outdoor mall, a civic space and a city park. It contains several water features which is how it encouraged such a fun-spirited article.

The idea, like many to have gained popularity in recent years, originated in Scandinavia. In the remote and tiny Igä valley in Sweden, a population of urban beavers has peacefully co-existed alongside humans for centuries.

With little fertile land, people in the town of Rollmopp realised that if they resisted the temptation to kill the beavers for tasty steaks and warm, furry hats and boots, the beavers would dam the fast-flowing river, providing fishing pools and irrigation.

Academics say it is a perfect example of man living in balance with nature.

The curious part of this article is that Iga valley could easily be Martinez. Of course if you allow beavers to live in an urban creek they will provide a community with new fish and wildlife. Why is that a joke?

Dr. Iva Ottersdotter, an urban zoologist at the University of Poang, said the ‘urban canyon’ conditions of the Parade were a near perfect match for the steep, rocky sides and barren soils of the Igä valley.

She said: “In an increasingly urban world, these loveable animals could provide a valuable link with nature for a generation of children, and attract people to the top of The Parade.

“It is almost as if beavers have evolved to be adorable. In Sweden we have recorded instances of beavers posing for selfies, picking up litter and one very serious beaver solving a murder.”

Beavers in selfies? Check. Beavers picking up trash? Check. Beavers solving murders?

Well not quite, but there was that one time the dam stopped that dead body from floating out to see and let officials find out who it was. Remember? It was in the contra costa times.

As part of the scheme, the triangle of land at the top of the Parade would be planted with a mix of trees imported from Sweden, with water flow introduced between an expanded series of pools.

The beavers would in time build their own lodge, but a ready-built home will be used at first, constructed on-site from a flat-pack with allen keys and easy-to-follow instructions.

To make the animals feel at home, The Parade would be repainted in muted blues and greys, with highlights of yellow and orange.

Will beavers make a lodge in an urban setting? You bet your tail they will. And did.

Prof Stieg Ituppyajummpa, visiting professor at the University of Beest in the Netherlands, has made a study of the interaction of intoxicated humans with animals.

The professor said: “As long as people can be trained to interact with the beavers correctly, there is no problem.

“They also have a nasty nip and know how to handle themselves in a fight.”

Ahh now you’re just being generous to us. Of COURSE Martinez beavers met up with many many reams of drunk citizens in their lives. From the day time drunks, to the needle litter we found around the lodge, to the huffers in the bushes and the loud creekside beer hall. Our beavers have dealt with drunks.

And generally brought out the best in them.

Community leaders have also expressed concern that the introduction of beavers would make the town the butt of endless smutty jokes.

The article ends with a silly concern that beavers will breed like rabbits which is no less ridiculous than literally every person in Martinez who worried about a population explosion.

After a decade of observation, I certainly can’t swear that beavers don’t have recreational sex from time to time, but biologically speaking they can only get pregnant once a year.

Not a funny article, but a sweet one. Thanks for the walk down memory lane.

BEAVER VIEWING IN THE CITY

heidi08 Urban beavers February 26, 2018

Is a month enough notice for beaver viewing night in Seattle? I hope so, lucky dam city. They get Ben and Samantha in person!

Meet Seattle’s Urban Beavers

Monday, April 2, 2018, 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM
Since their near eradication in the early 20th century, beavers have made a surprising comeback. Today, beavers have returned to many streams and waterways of Seattle, including Yesler Swamp in the Center for Urban Horticulture’s backyard. Come join us as we discuss beavers, tour their work, and potentially view some busy beavers in action. , Ben Dittbrenner (UW School of Environmental and Forest Sciences), will provide a presentation on beaver life history and ecology. Samantha Everett, local beaver expert, will lead a tour through Yesler Swamp, stopping at active beaver areas with some potential beaver viewing. Since beavers are nocturnal, we’ll be starting our tour after dark, so we have the best chance to view them.

If you are interested in the tour portion, please bring a flashlight!

How fun! I wish I could be there and heard from Judy and Jim of Port Moody that they’re coming.

Children watching beaver in urban environment
Martinez, CA

Apparently Cincinatti Ohio never got our memo about beavers dispersing in February because this was on the news.

Floods bring jaywalking beaver to streets

Beavers in the Ohio River are quite common, but rarely are they spotted in the city.

The beaver was caught on video emerging from the water at Smale Riverfront Park near the Roebling Suspension Bridge. The video was shot by viewer Jess Summers.

The little beaver briefly walked around on the flooded park’s walkway, then disappeared back into the Ohio River.

LIVING WITH WILDLIFE, BEAUTIFULLY

heidi08 Beaver Art, Urban beavers February 25, 2018

Humans are encroaching all over the world, moving into wild spaces that used to be left to the creatures who we call ‘animals’. It is estimated that by the next census more than 80% of the population will live in urban areas, not just in the US. It’s true from Canada to Wisconsin and Peyong. This means we are forced to cross paths with wildlife more and more often. And we need more and more articles like this to show the way.

Living Green: Learning to live with azzznd help our local wildlife

Bear season isn’t far away in the Tri-Cities and, with it, a focus on managing attractants such as garbage. But there’s more to living with bears and other wildlife than keeping our food waste inside until it’s time for pickup.

Urbanization affects how wildlife moves through watersheds — and, FYI, we all live in a watershed. Development fragments and destroys wildlife habitat. Wildlife must then adjust to an ever-changing world, seeking new habitat to forage for food, hunt for prey and raise their young.

We can minimize stressful encounters and potential conflict with wildlife by being aware of the diversity of wildlife around us, by using common sense and by employing preventative techniques. Bear and coyote sightings, for example, often increase as a result of humans providing a food source.

What a wonderful way to start an article! Remember it wasn’t very long ago that we were writing about the fact that conservationists are noting that the green areas inside cities are often the greatest boost to biodiversity.

Recently, I sat down with local beaver advocates Jim and Judy Atkinson. I wanted to hear about their more than 25 years of experience living in Jasper National Park and how they had come to have such a deep appreciation and passion for so many of our native wildlife.

First deer, then elk, came into town annually to give birth, where the urban environment afforded them temporary protection from predators. As they were understandably protective of their calves, Parks Canada eventually had to deter their return by fencing off large grassy areas on which the elk liked to graze (school grounds and fields), and to dissuade them from coming into town by waving hockey sticks with plastic streamers attached

Returning to the industrious beaver, I am further enlightened by the Atkinsons. Beavers have existed for the past 30 to 60 million years. Spanning some 300 years, beaver trapping occurred ahead of European settlers and decimated the mammals’ population to 1% of its original numbers.

Today’s society, therefore, has not co-evolved with beavers. The Haida First Nation, on the other hand, has long recognized the interconnection between beavers and salmon. Beaver dams create ponds that provide resting areas for migrating salmon and make ideal nurseries for juvenile fish by creating complex edge habitat, increasing insect food supply and contributing beneficial woody debris into the ecosystem.

Excellent! Jim and Judy are the gifts to beavers that keep on giving! I’m so grateful for their work and that our paths crossed. I wish this article was syndicated to appear in a million newspapers. Here in Martinez understand very well that the benefits of urban beavers aren’t just for salmon, but for the lives of all the people who protect them.

Which brings me to the donation we received yesterday from enormously talented artist Lori Preusch of Dandelion based in Colorado.

Her stunning illustrations capture the gloriously incongruous magic of childhood and wildlife in all it’s impossible splendor. She generously sent a large studio print and several cards sets which we are thrilled to add to the auction. I can’t tell you how mesmerizing they are to look at, so I thought I would share some of the images.

Here was her generous response when I asked for a donation:

I would be happy to donate to your Worth a Dam festival. You have no idea how much beavers have played a role in my own life. In fact we have one of those flow devices on our property which we call the “beaver deceiver,” because of a similar situation we had regarding neighbors who didn’t enjoy the beavers as much as we do. I live with beavers every day and adore them. Let me know what your deadline is and if you have an image or two in mind that you think would be particularly appreciated by your group. I am sorry to say that I do not yet have a beaver image but will I am sure at some point. I’ll wait to hear from you and then send a few things your way. Lori

This was the image I saw online that made me track her down originally. I’m honestly not kidding when I say go check out her website. You will spend an hour just drinking in her images. When I see them I remember that magical portal I could step through freely as a child, either with a wondrous new book or with a fanciful story and a willing imagination. She is an amazingly talented with an eye for wonder.

Thank you so much, Lory.

SOUTH CAROLINA BEAVER NEIGHBORS

heidi08 Urban beavers February 10, 2018

Sometimes in life, you find friends where you’d never expect it. Like when the designer that was helping us replace our couch found out we save beavers and donated a huge bag of leather upholstery scraps for our tail projects. Or when I was in the hospital and the night nurse recognized me from the news and said she was so happy we had saved the beavers in Martinez.

You learn that friends come in all kind of packages and you appreciate them however they’re wrapped. Which brings us to South Carolina.

Hungry beavers in Charleston suburb chow down where they shouldn’t be

Tricia Crumbley couldn’t believe it — the limbs of all four of her prized Japanese maples that canopied her ornamental waterfall pond lay on the ground around the gnawed stumps.

Chewed maple sticks were left underwater at the foot of the falls. The culprit couldn’t be more clear: beavers.

Except she lives in West Ashley’s Crescent subdivision, just off the saltwater Wappoo Cut, near brackish retention ponds fed by tides. In her 10 years there, she’s seen squirrels, opossum, raccoons and a fox. But the freshwater-loving beaver shouldn’t have been anywhere nearby.

“I just stood there with my mouth open,” she said. “I have no idea where they came from.”

;

So here’s a well-off looking woman in South Carolina with an ornamental fountain on a garden so large she needed to be told by the groundskeeper that something was eating her trees. I admit. I assumed the worst those for beavers and thought they’d not be long for this world.

“It is possible the sound of the running water (in the Crumbley’s waterfall) kicked-in a desire to dam up whatever was flowing and then once they discovered it was an ornamental pond, they turned their attention to the maples,” Butfiloski said.

Tricia Crumbley knows the beavers were doing what they are supposed to do.

“Just not here,” she preferred.

The couple didn’t try to trap their invaders. Instead, they put wire fencing around what’s left of their maples, turned off the waterfall and haven’t seen any more gnawing.

My goodness! I didn’t see that coming. To be honest, I never expected anyone in South Carolina to wrap trees, certainly not a wealthy home owner. I am so sorry misjudged you, Tricia. You are a thoughtful woman who solves problems thoughtfully.

Just in case you don’t want to see all that wire near your pond, you can also paint the threatened trees with sand paint which is less visually disruptive. I will see if I can let her know,

But as for the rumor that beavers were driven to chop down your trees because of the sound of running water- No.

Beavers were driven to chop down your trees because they were hungry.

NOT SO MOODY ANYMORE

heidi08 Urban beavers, Who's saving beavers now? February 7, 2018

I’m suddenly feeling like an old retired ballerina watching my protege take the stage. I have to be honest, it does feel a little wistful – that used to be my life kinda thing – but man-o-man it mostly feels WONDERFUL!

Beavers an education for residents, city

A new beaver management plan could yet turn Port Moody into a paradise for the resourceful rodents.

But it will have to respect the science about the animals’ habits and lifestyle while finding a balance within urban environments where they’re settling.

Judy Taylor-Atkinson and Jim Atkinson look out over the beaver pond on Pigeon Creek that was created by a family of industrious beavers that moved into the area in 2016.

That’s the best-case scenario, according to a pair of local advocates for fur-bearing animals, Judy Taylor-Atkinson and husband Jim Atkinson.

They were observers when a beaver pair made Pigeon Creek, in their Klahanie neighbourhood, home in 2016 and then became a family of four last summer. And they shared the community’s anguish when one of the young kits drowned in December as city crews attempted to trap and evict it from a den the beavers had constructed in a storm pipe that drains rainwater and prevents flooding.

Ahh how glorious! I’m beside myself with glee. And should our mayor be too to think that Judy and Jim are driving from B.C. to Martinez to attend our beaver festival! I’m told they already made their reservations;

Taylor-Atkinson has been studying the science of beavers and their management for years while her husband helps install flow regulators into dams to diminish the chances of damaging floods. Both are on the board of the Association for the Protection of Fur-Bearing Animals (The Fur-Bearers).

Beavers are notoriously nocturnal, Taylor-Atkinson said, but once they settled into their new home in the stream that runs amidst low-rise condo buildings, they grew accustomed to the human hustle and bustle around them. A curiosity quickly became a real life neighbourhood nature show.

While nearby trees that had been planted by the developer were wrapped to protect them from the beavers’ toothy toil, the natural habitat along the creek’s banks was left alone and the beavers’ activities respected. One neighbour even attached a log book in a plastic sleeve on the bridge railing so visitors could note their observations.

Taylor-Atkinson said the transformation of the creek to a beaver ecosystem was remarkable. The still water attracted bugs like dragonflies to alight, which attracted birds and bats and salamanders to eat them. The cool, sheltered eddies created by fallen limbs and branches in the water were perfect resting places for salmon fingerlings, which attracted ducks and even a juvenile heron to make the occasional visit for a snack. The dam filtered sediment, clearing the water and pushing it into the creek’s banks, encouraging new growth like bullrushes to take root.

“They were repairing the habitat,” Taylor-Atkinson said, adding beavers are considered a “keystone species” around which an entire ecosystem revolves — a marked contrast to old-school thinking that beavers and their industrious ways are a nuisance, especially in urban environments.

Those two paragraphs! SNIFF! I’m sooooooo proud. To think of how many people will be inspired by this story and think maybe they can maybe do something just a little bit different in their own city when the time comes! Ahhhh, Go read the whole thing and send it to your cousins. I’m going to bask in the thought that Martinez own hard fought story made this just a little easier to happen. And their story will make it that much easier for the next one.

“When this creek was built, nobody knew they were creating an ideal beaver habitat.”

Keeping it that way will be a matter of education and good science, she said — and a legacy for the young beaver that perished.

“We didn’t lose that kit for nothing.”

No you did not. That unfortunate kit played a crucial role in his entire families story. And his cousins. And extended family. And in ours. Thank you so much, Judy and Jim.