Ta daa! We have a beaver mural! Just under 11 months since it’s discussion, the whole project is finalized. You silly thing you were probably assuming that we already had one when the idea was approved, and when the painting was finished according to plan, or when it was approved by the Parks Recreation Marina and Cultural Commission – but you’d be dead wrong. Because the completed mural needed the approval of city council – which it got last night. Someone from the public even commented that it cheered them up when they walked by it. I presented and updated them on our two beavers, Mark and Lara thanked me, the mayor said nothing, then they voted and it was approved.
Ta Daa!
Meanwhile there’s plenty of beaver news to share this morning. I was enormously disappointed to see this article made the Huffington Post yesterday. It’s from the anti-trapping source “Born Free”.
What Kind of Person Still Traps Wild Animals?
What kind of person purposely destroys a beaver dam and sets a “wall of death“ of Conibear traps, knowing that the unsuspecting beavers will return to repair their handiwork—only to be possibly smashed across their abdomens and drowned?
What kind of person knows that these atrocities occur regularly across America—still, in 2016—and does nothing?
Today, Born Free USA has revealed our second undercover investigation, Victims of Vanity II, which delves into the brutal trapping industry and fur trade in an effort to expose these grotesque and indefensible industries. Trapping, like hunting, is dominated by people engaged in “sport” and “recreation,” not necessity. And, even if there is some commercial by-product—selling the furs—trapping is about vicious slaughter, not gainful employment.
Oooh, BF doesn’t like Fur! Give them money right now! Never mind using the podium to talk about beavers as a keystone species or discuss their impact on wildlife or fish or water storage. Never mind using your time on the HP to mention about what beavers could mean to our resilience in climate change. Never mind that the vast majority of beavers are trapped for depredation – not fur – and have been for years and years. Never mind that people might never use beaver fur again in the history of the world and many thousands of beavers would STILL be crushed to death in conibears every year anyway.
Of course the two predictable comments to the post are from me, and a trapper, saying exactly what you’d expect them to say. BF and trapping folks must follow each other like shadows always saying the exact same thing and never learning anything at all. I’m impatient to hear something new from either of them or make them hear something new from ME.
When do I get to write an article on the Huffington Post?
There’s also an interesting article on the Canadian Railway about the removal of two seemingly abandoned beaver dams in Banff.
Legacy Trail beaver pond to be removed
A prominent beaver pond along Legacy Trail in Banff National Park has all but disappeared as Canadian Pacific Railway prepares to destroy a beaver dam that’s causing train track safety concerns.
Two ponds have dried up while water levels in the main pond are extremely low. At the same time as the water levels were lowering, two beavers were found dead in the area over the past two weeks, run over by vehicles on the Trans-Canada Highway.
Beaver are known for their unprecedented feats of ecological engineering – building dams, ponds and wetlands that can flood and damage human infrastructure – and are persecuted by humans as a result.
They are also considered a keystone species, creating ponds that consistently have higher waterfowl diversity, more complex invertebrate communities, and provide critical habitats for amphibians. They also create habitats that provide flood mitigation and resilience to extreme drought.
The two dead beavers were found on Aug. 25 and Aug. 29.
“Both appear to have been struck by vehicles,” said Tricomi. “When the TCH fence is replaced, we hope to bring the fence closer to the road to keep beavers away from traffic.”
A spokesperson for Canadian Pacific Railway could not be reached for comment by press time.
Bow Valley Naturalists are disappointed to see the beaver dam go, noting the trailside beaver dam is one of the few opportunities for a Legacy Trail nature connection, other than the Valleyview picnic area.
“The proposed removal of the dam and Parks Canada’s suggestion that fencing modifications should be put in place to prevent beavers from crossing the road – separating cyclists from the remainder of the dam – would remove this connection,” said BVN’s Reg Bunyan. “It would be very sad to see that beaver dam go.
Seems Alberta just came across its first documented case of ‘whirling disease’ nearby and the railroad is holding off removing the big dam until they find out if their fish are affected. I’m just happy when people have to review beaver benefits before removing an abandoned dam. We’d call that success in our book.
Don’t worry. I’m sure they’ll get more soon. Did you notice how densely wooded that dam is? There must be a truckload of trees in the area.
