I’m guessing this is bad news for Mr. and Mrs. Beaver.
Eager beaver latest to check out benefits of urban living
Officials are keeping a close eye on Lake Chipican’s newest resident.
A beaver arrived a few weeks ago, and though the city has no immediate plans to relocate the giant rodent, staff is watching for tree damage in Sarnia’s most popular park, said Parks and Recreation director Rob Harwood.
The newcomer adds to a growing incursion by beavers, which have joined coyotes, eagles, opossums, turkeys and other once exotic wildlife now earning a decent living inside city limits.
Nature educator Kim Gledhill said beavers are a “keystone” species whose presence indicates a healthy ecosystem.
Sarnia is almost over the city limits from Detroit, but in the Ontario side of Michigan. It’s none too excited about it’s new neighbors either. Oh and Kim, good try on the positive spin, but beavers aren’t sign of a healthy ecosystem. Beavers moved into Cherynoble. Beavers MAKE a healthy ecosystem.
Hopefully, the city won’t need to take action because beavers often struggle when relocated to unfamiliar environments, she said.
“Unless I start seeing trees coming down I’m not worried about it,” said the former St. Clair Region Conservation Authority worker.
And how often does that happen, really?
Beavers set up shop in Logan Pond on the Howard Watson Nature trail several years ago and did cause considerable damage, said Brenda Lorenz, a member of Sarnia’s environmental advisory committee.
“There was some really nice oak trees that had been planted and they were maybe two or three inches in diameter and they chopped them down,” she said.
Beavers also gnawed through most of the poplars on Sarnia’s waterfront The Point Lands a few years ago before moving on.
In 2016, beavers were discovered in Twin Lakes during a routine staff inspection by city staff. The pair was captured in humane traps by a provincially licensed trapper and relocated to the county before they could block up the ponds’ discharge outlet and cause flooding, a city official said.
And last summer a beaver dam near a Suncor tank farm at Aamjiwnaang caused localized flooding.
A species-at-risk technician with the band suggested building dam bypasses, and corrugated pipe made of heavy plastic was installed beneath the dams, allowing some water to flow through the area without disturbing the beavers.
Goodness, this “I’m fine with beavers as long as they don’t behave like beavers” attitude has got to stop! If you’re going to get rid of the little guy attempt it right now, while everyone’s looking and curious about this fellow. Don’t wait until the next distracting thing to happen.
There’s a much better chance for our side.
Beavers eat trees, Look it up. It’s a thing, Smart city workers that live on big bodies of water wrap the trees they want to save with wire. And then beavers eat something else. Stop me if you’ve heard this before.
Strange video recorded at Outer Banks shows beaver wading in surf, blowing bubbles
Meanwhile this beaver in North Carolina isn’t looking too well.
A video posted by the National Park Service of a beaver blowing bubbles as it wades off the Outer Banks has presented wildlife officials with an intriguing mystery.
Beavers don’t enjoy saltwater, so why was it calmly lingering in the surf off a North Carolina barrier island, asks the National Park Service.
And what’s with the bubbles?
Well, actually you’re wrong. Beavers can manage in water as salty as 10 parts per thousand. And often use bodies of water saltier than that to get from A to B. But this beaver in the video doesn’t look fine. He looks very sick. Obviously. So stop posting videos and talking to the media get off your Park service Duff and go rescue him.
