Category: Urban beavers

BEAVERS AND TROUT

heidi08 Beavers and trout, Urban beavers January 5, 2018

There are plenty of folks whounderstand the importance of beavers at both ends of the United States. And not nearly enough in the middle. Flyover country, as its called, doesn’t take kindly to beavers. So you can imagine how pleased I am about these two entries. The first is from Ohio and the second from just across the great lakes in Milwakee.

Ohio beavers

When I was a young fella and still living in Maine, one of the greatest things you could run across in the wild was a beaver dam. Most of the streams and brooks in my area held populations of wild brook trout. A beaver dam on a trout brook meant one thing to me. Bigger trout!

The dam usually backed up enough water to form at least a small pond, or in some cases, a very large pond or backwater. After a couple of years, these ponds let the brook trout population grow to larger sizes than in the shallow, narrower brooks. Their still waters let large populations of insects flourish and provide the trout with more than an adequate diet.

I have seen ancient beaver dams that were over a quarter of a mile in length and higher than 10 feet in places. However, a beaver dam of any size on a trout brook was a welcome sight. Normally, in most Maine trout brooks, the trout average about seven or eight inches in length with occasional ones over 10 inches.

Brook trout have to be one of the tastiest fish ever to have swum in an icy cold brook regardless of its size. In fact, after attaining a length of a foot or more, they don’t seem to taste as good. Don’t get me wrong — they are still at the top of my list of food fish no matter their length. There are no wild brook trout out here in Ohio, at least, not to my knowledge. If there were, I guarantee that Ohio’s attitude toward the beaver and its dams would change in a hurry!

My experience out here with beavers is limited. All I know is that there is a population of them at Lake Logan. However, from what I have been able to ascertain with my own eyes, any laws and regulations pertaining to beaver here in the hills are totally ignored and/or not enforced. Every time I have seen a beaver dam in this area, in very short order, it disappears. I have seen, and photographed, several beavers that had been shot and killed at the lake.

Foxholes make strange bedfellows. There are precious few folks in Ohio that care about beavers. So I’m going to be happy about this columnist who appreciates them because the trout get bigger in their ponds. (And everything else, too, by the way). Of course he doesn’t realize that beavers don’t dam large rivers because they don’t need to. And since there’s no dam there’s nothing to draw attention to their presence and get them killed.

They aren’t different beavers. They are the beavers that happen to survive.

Obviously the distinction between beavers that build dams and beavers that don’t build dams is a mysterious one for lots of people. The truth is there isn’t much mystery at all. Beavers build dams when they need to create deep water to protect their offspring. If there is ALREADY deep water there is no need to do it. That is all. Researchers have plucked beavers from deep streams (where they maintained zero dams) and swooped them upstream to little streams where dams were necessary. Then sat back to observe them BUILDING DAMS 0stemsibly for the first time.

It’s instinct, baby.

(Although instinct that is honed with practice I’ll say. Because we saw our beavers get better at building over time, and we saw that there were skilled beavers and stupid beavers in our 10 years of field research here in Martinez. Dad and Reed were the best dam builders of all 30 beavers. But everyone tried.) Even beavers in rehab ‘try’, With newspapers or towels or whatever they have on hand – er tooth;<You will see this confusion pops up in this nice film from Milwakee as well, when the woman from the urban ecology center remarks that ‘they don’t have the dam-building beavers’ there. They’re the same dam beavers! We will cut her slack. It’s a nice film and an easy mistake when you’ve haven’t had local beavers in 120 years.

I’m also very fond of the landowner whose so happy to have them back on his property.

This nice image comes from the Getty museum. I love everything about it but I can’t figure out why it’s shown cut in cubes. Can you?

MAKE WAY FOR URBAN BEAVERS

heidi08 Urban beavers January 4, 2018

I feel it’s time to read another article that’s really about our beavers without realizing it. Maybe this time from Yale. Are you ready?

Habita t on the Edges: Making Room for Wildlife in an Urbanized World

Efforts to protect biodiversity are now focusing less on preserving pristine areas and more on finding room for wildlife on the margins of human development. As urban areas keep expanding, it is increasingly the only way to allow species to survive.

For conservationists, protecting biodiversity has in recent years become much less about securing new protected areas in pristine habitat and more about making room for wildlife on the margins of our own urbanized existence. Conservation now often means modifying human landscapes to do double-duty as wildlife habitat — or, more accurately, to continue functioning for wildlife even as humans colonize them for their homes, highways, and farms. There is simply no place else for animals to live.

Corridor protection on the grand scale has achieved remarkable results, notably with the 2,000-mile long Yellowstone-to-Yukon Conservation Initiative. It aims to connect protected areas and to ensure safe passage for elk, grizzly bears, and other wildlife across 500,000 square miles of largely shared habitat, both public and privately owned. At the same time, research by Nick Haddad, a conservation biologist at the University of Michigan’s W.K. Kellogg Biological Station, has demonstrated substantial improvements in biodiversity from corridors as little as 25 yards in width, well within the range, he says, of “what’s reasonable in urban landscapes.” Indeed, a new study from northern Botswana has found that elephants traveling from Chobe National Park to the nearby Chobe River will use corridors as small as 10 feet wide to traverse newly urbanized areas.

Even in the absence of new parks and other habitat, city residents have rallied to their wildlife, sometimes in extraordinary fashion. In Mumbai, development-oriented politicians continue to encourage the destruction of natural habitat, particularly in the Aarey Milk Colony neighborhood abutting the city’s Sanjay Gandhi National Park. But local conservationists, together with the park itself, have launched a pioneering campaign to help densely populated neighborhoods around the park cope with more than 30 free-ranging leopards in their midst. Likewise, Los Angeles has turned its mountain lions into urban folk heroes. (The Facebook bio of the lion known as P22 begins: “Hi! I’m LA’s loneliest bachelor. I like to hang out under the Hollywood sign to try and pick up cougars. Likes: Deer, catnip, Los Feliz weekends. Dislikes: Traffic, coyotes, P-45.”)

But caution about the potential of our cities and suburbs as wildlife habitat is probably still a good idea. One danger is that these landscapes may become “ecological sinks” — that is, places where excess individuals from undisturbed habitat can survive, but not ultimately increase. Having straw-headed bulbuls in central Singapore does not, for instance, ensure survival of the species. Success with some more visible species may also blind us to broader but less obvious declines in other species. European rewilding, for instance, has not been rewilding for its insect population.

Hmm, isn’t that a GREAT article about our beavers that never mentions them once? I told you so. Again, I’m no scientist but if I was looking for one single species to tolerate on the urban landscape that gave the most bang for your buck – you know, biodiversity, focal species, social cohesion – I’d pick beaver. Their little urban dams would take that urban corridor you call a creek and elevate it to the next level with birds, fish and otters. Doesn’t that seem like a great investment for any city to make?

STATEN ISLAND AND THE BEAVER CHALLENGE

heidi08 Staten Island Beavers, Urban beavers December 13, 2017

Oh no! A small Richmond neighborhood in Staten Island New York has just discovered it has those rare re-building beavers! How unfortunate, who knew that aberant strain was so very common?

Oh, dam! Busy beavers close dam overnight in Richmond

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Residents of a low-lying section of Richmond are concerned about their new neighbors — a group of beavers.

The animals, possibly numbering four, have built a lodge near Richmond Creek, and a dam over the water. The blockage has caused flooding to an area that already had drainage problems.

“It was never a lake before,” said resident Joe Palladino, who noted that Oct. 29 was the first time he saw the area “flood out extensively.”He’s counted at least 100 trees that have been felled by the animals as well. “Neighbors and I are all concerned about the number of beavers and the damage they are creating,” Palladino explained.

Never mind that those little trees could be easily wrapped with wire or painted with sand by a bunch of boyscouts…and never mind that the little dam can easily be managed with a flow device….and never mind that living where you do at the edge of Richmond near the water you’re going to get more beavers for the foreseeable future even if they trap out these ones – Mr Palladno is worried, and he’s talked to his neighbors!

Residents say they’ve reported their concerns to the city Department of Environmental Protection and employees have come to clear the dams. On a recent weekday, the DEP cleared a 2-foot hole. By 6:30 a.m. the next morning, the opening was completely closed with not a trickle of water flowing.

“These beavers are really good architects,” said Dr. Franklin Caldera, who lives on nearby St. Andrews Road and walks the trails in the woods frequently.

You mean to tell me you ripped out a section of the dam and the beavers repaired it that night? That almost ~~never~~ always happens! Whatever can you do?

Thank goodness you have answers at your doorstep. Beavers: Wetlands and Wildlife is about 4 hours upstate from you. Beaver Solutions in Massachusetts is about 3 hours to your east. And the Unexpected Wildlife Refuge in New Jersey is an hour and a half south. All of these folks can tell you exactly how to protect your trees, your streets and your community. And they will also tell you why beavers are the best neighbors you could ever hope to have.

You’re lucky. We had to bring an expert 3000 miles to help us. You just have to go nextdoor.

Plus if you take steps to let the beavers stay, they will use their naturally territorial behaviors to keep others away and turn your little neighborhood wood into a wildlife park, with new species of otter, mink and woodduck.

Count yourself lucky that you already got a great beaver habitat photo shoot from Staten Island Advance photographer Jan Somma-Hammel. I don’t know if she even realizes how lucky she was to capture this:

Rare glimpse of actual top teeth:Jan Somma-Hammel

As you know, we almost never see top teeth in a live beaver. Look close and you will see her displaying his or her pearly whites – er- tangerine oranges doing what they do best.

I will see if I can reach anyone at Richmond beaver central and try get good answers their way. Some of those tree wrapping jobs are ridiculous. Today is a great day for Richmond to learn about beavers.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to end the post with Billie. It’s irresistible.

TOMORROW’S BEAVER SCHOLARS

heidi08 Beavers and water, Urban beavers November 28, 2017

It’s almost time for the 13th annual Berkeley River Restoration Symposium.

The Keynote will be by Robin Grossinger who we know has very, very interesting things to say about ecology in California.

Urban streaming: cities, storms, and ecosystems flow into the future
Robin Grossinger, Senior Scientist, San Francisco Estuary Institute

Of course you know this means lots and lots of conversations about urban beavers and how good they are for city creeks right? Well, no, But there are some interesting subjects being discussed by the graduate students. Especially this:

Examining the Effects of Beaver (Castor canadensis) Activity on a High Sierra Meadow Restoration Project

Kieran Locke,
Dasha Pechurina,
Andrew Salmon

I wonder if our friend Ann Riley will be there, and if any of the attendees read the chapter of her most recent book that talked about the work Martinez did to restore its creek by letting beavers live there for a decade.

This chapter in particular looks fascinating.

Here she is on WTTW Chicago for their “Urban Nature” series talking about her work daylighting strawberry creek in Berkeley. I can’t embed the excellent segment, but click on the photo to watch it on their website.

Lucky Beavers In Capable Hands

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beaver Chewing, Beavers, Beavers and Forests, Beavers elsewhere, Urban beavers, Who's saving beavers now? November 10, 2017

I received an update yesterday from the hardy Judy Taylor-Atkinson of Port Moody Vancouver who is working to save the beavers at the development where she lives. She is doing a wonderful job focusing public attention on the beavers and getting the community interested in them. In fact she’s doing SUCH a fine job that I’m pretty sure at this point our beavers are jealous.

Yesterday she wrote this:

We had our first mini crisis last week when the beavers knocked down a large unwrapped black cottonwood tree and it landed on a homeowners fence, just damaging it slightly. I was immediately notified by people in our neighbourhood who love the beavers and I went to work posting messages on our community facebook page and notifying the city arborist, Steve, (who actually likes the beavers) and requesting the trees in that area be wrapped. Steve sent his two staff, Alex and Doug, who have been trained by Adrian Nelson on the proper way to wrap trees, the next day.

My facebook post read –

“Jim just came back and Silverlining landscape have removed the top of the aspen tree and Jim advised them to leave the branches and cuttings close to the stream bank for the beavers. We will meet with the city arborist today and wrap that stand of trees. The beavers have been eating mostly willow, dogwood, poplar and shrubs. Some trees will be wrapped and others will be left as food sources because there is a natural balance between beavers and trees. Beavers open up the tree canopy to let light in and smaller trees will grow. Some species of trees, like willow, have evolved with beavers and they actually grow faster if a beaver chops them down. The greenbelt is changing from a “stream” ecosystem to a “pond” ecosystem.”

That post seemed to settle everyone down (Jim is my husband). The next day, I posted a picture of Doug and Alex wrapping the trees with the post –

“Thank you to Doug and Alex for wrapping the cottonwoods this morning and to Steve (our city arborist) for his valuable knowledge about our trees along Pigeon Creek. Steve said they are busy right now removing downed trees throughout the city (due to a bad combination of drought followed by intense rain and now a cold snap).”

Thankfully, Steve, the city arborist seems to be quite supportive (and interested) in the beavers. When the beavers first turned up a year ago Steve didn’t know anything about them and now you should hear him! He knows what kind of trees they prefer (and why), which trees offer the most nutrition for beavers (cottonwoods, poplars) and he’s not concerned about the willows at all. He just has to make sure the trees don’t fall on a building and now he has a plan to wrap those trees. He has also been along the stream and is quite sure that the trees the beavers could potentially knock down will not fall away from the stream.

Isn’t that wonderful? She is committed to making beaver friends wherever she goes, and NOW those lucky beavers even have an arborist who is learning to love them! (Does Martinez even have an arborist? Or know the word?) I asked for her permission to share this because I think it is inspiring to others who are thinking of doing something similar. She and her husband are hard at work in the community encouraging, explaining and de-mystifying beaver behavior. I wish very much I could resist this little rhyme that has crept into my mind, because she deserves so much better, but there’s no avoiding it now.

Thank heavens for Judy
On duty
In Port Moody

There’s excellent beaver management news this morning from Idaho where the watershed guardians just installed a pond leveler for veterans day. Given the hard time that many beavers face in the Gem state, these critters are lucky indeed! Great work Mike Settell and team Pocatello!

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“Thank you, Bruce, for serving on the Watershed Guardians board, providing inspiration, leadership and flatout hard work. We will honor your volunteerism by carrying on our work to help the Portneuf River Watershed, one beaver at a time!”