Canada wants to be in charge of its own beavers, thank you very much.

COLUMN: Industrious beaver has long been a source of Canadian pride

In January 1975, a senator for New York introduced a bill to acknowledge the beaver as its state’s official animal. Well, harrumph, this did not go over well with Canadians, who had, for a couple of centuries, ‘claimed’ the beaver to be representative of all things Canadian: an industrious engineer and the base of our economy ever since the first European explorers tripped over this area.

In quick response to this threat of an American brazenly stealing our nation’s pride and joy, in March 1975, a private member’s bill was presented by MP Sean O’Sullivan to rightfully claim and protect the beaver icon to be our nation’s representative. On March 24, 1975, the Canadian Parliament made it so. Take that, ya upstart Americans! Elbows up, eh?

Ok, but I honestly don’t know why beavers are uniquely Canadian. Everyone who had them killed them. And they were a boom for every nations economy at one time.

The beaver had been inserted into many company logos well before 1975: the Hudson’s Bay Company since way back when; Roots clothing, which outfitted the 1998 Canadian Winter Olympic teams with its beaver-branded clothing; and Parks Canada, which long had the beaver as its mascot. And many others, probably more so than even the Canada goose.

What surprised me a bit was that the beaver had shown up on Canadian nickels since 1937, well before the aforementioned American/Canadian beaver debacle of 1975. As a young collector of coins in the 1960s, I assumed that to be engraved on a coin, the subject must have already received royal assent. The things you learn later in life.

Honestly Canada has a lot to be pissed about right now so we should just give them the beaver. Okay?

This headline made me smile and was even note worthy enough to be sent to me by Amy our chalk artist who is usually too busy in her own life to check in until May.

Report: More Americans Moving Away From Urban Areas For Rural Life Where They Have Escalating Feud With Beaver

CAMBRIDGE, MA—Suggesting the reversal of a longstanding historical trend towards urbanization, a report published Tuesday by researchers at Harvard University revealed that more Americans were moving away from cities to pursue a rural life where they have an escalating feud with a beaver.

“Our findings indicate there has been a 15% increase in Americans who trade the hustle and bustle of metropolitan life for an agrestic existence in which they dismantle a small beaver dam on their property, leading the determined rodent to seek retribution,” said the report’s lead author,

Just to be clear: if this was true they would all be living in Placer county because that sounds exactly like what happens every year in Rocklin or Lincoln.

Keith Rawlings, noting that rising rents and concerns about crime had driven even long-term city dwellers to purchase a secluded woodland home whose walls, cabinets, and tables would ultimately be gnawed into a series of elaborate booby traps by the vengeful beaver and his family. “More U.S. citizens are leaving behind the nightlife and cultural events of large urban centers, preferring to spend their disposable income on a faulty beaver-trapping kit, an eccentric exterminator who will end up poisoning himself, and a two-barrel shotgun they will use to destroy their remaining possessions in a desperate pursuit of the elusive semiaquatic mammal.

Oh I wish trapping beaver was even a LITTLE bit hard!

While many say they miss the convenience and variety of cities, they nonetheless prefer a country life in which they realize the beaver would make the perfect mascot for the big ad campaign they’ve been working on and ultimately learn to live in peace with the creature.” Rawlings added that, by contrast, a relatively negligible number of Americans were choosing to leave rural areas in pursuit of an urban life in which they befriend a wise-cracking pigeon.

That’s true. Beavers are way better than pigeons.

Minnesota is going to school. Beaver school to be exact. While Dr. Fairfax was teaching in California we got a whole lot smarter in the Golden State.

Now it is Minnesota’s turn.

 

Itasca Waters will continue its online Practical Water Wisdom series at noon on Thursday, April 3, with Beaver Dams, Ponds and Effects.

This program will feature Emily Fairfax, assistant professor of Geography at the University of Minnesota, who will describe the role of the beaver within the ecosystem of the Great Lakes Region. Fairfax will also discuss beaver management practices and strategies for the future.

Lets hope its the same role they play everywhere else if we let them.

“Learn about the benefits and challenges of beaver activity, from improving water quality and wildlife habitat to dealing with flooded roads or downed trees,” said a release.

The Practical Water Wisdom series is the brainchild of Itasca Waters, a nonprofit organization located in Itasca County whose mission is to team up with organizations and concerned citizens to maintain clean water for continued health, enjoyment and a strong economy.

Attendees will hear about ice-out forecasts, climate change and fisheries, septic system inspections, harmful algae blooms, drainage infrastructure, traditional ecological knowledge in lake management, banded mystery snails and water-focused books for children in future webinars.

Bring on the Beavers. Any good beaver showroom knows they come with problems AND solutions.

Happy first day of spring! This was posted yesterday on the rewildling webpage. I like it a lot, but I’m not sure a cow should be in the water upstream.

Great article from Wildlife Defenders who have been beaver believers since way back in the Sherri Tippie days.

United by Water, Helped by Beavers

In the upper reaches of the Rio Quemado lies the small village of Cordova. At the edge of town lives Emilio Borrego, a young farmer with a passion for all things farming and wildlife, especially fruit trees and beavers. Emilio is assisting Defenders with community outreach about beavers and how to coexist with them.

When not farming, Emilio spends his time helping people to conserve water during their farming operations and promoting beavers for more reliable water resources. He also encourages participation in Defenders’ beaver coexistence cost share program for anyone needing help mitigating a beaver-human conflict.

Beavers and water security. What a great phrase. I want to print it on all our faucets.

In the Southwest, as a result of climate change, many perennial rivers now run dry during parts of the year. The Rio Quemado is one such river. Originating from the snows of Truchas Peak, this river supports diverse wildlife, as well as numerous traditional acequia farming communities.

Acequia farming in Northern New Mexico dates back to Spanish colonization. These small-scale farmers divert water via ditches — or acequias in Spanish — to irrigate their crop fields far from rivers. One of these farmers, Don Bustos, uses acequia farming to grow and sell asparagus, blackberries, chilis and more. All his produce is sold within a 25-mile radius of his farm in Chimayo, New Mexico. For Don, and other acequia farmers, an abundant water supply not only provides a living, but also sustains a unique, treasured way of life.

To sustain this culture, as well as provide ample water for wildlife, our team is installing beaver dam analogues along the Rio Quemado. Beaver dam analogues are human-made structures that do their best to mimic beaver dams. Each beaver dam and analogue causes water to pond, which in turn allows the surrounding soils to soak up water like a sponge during high flows. Then, during the summer, when flows are low, this water seeps out of the soil and back into the river, helping it flow year-round. In areas where beaver habitat is no longer present – due to a variety of factors, including depleted water tables and a corresponding lack of vegetation for food – the analogues also help to restore habitat and encourage beavers to move in, improve upon and sustain our restoration efforts.

Let the beavers do the work. It’s ready for primetime and coming to an Acequia near you.

The primary goal of our beaver dam analogues and community outreach work is to sustain year-round water flows from Truchas Peak to the Rio Grande. On its way down the mountain, the Rio Quemado flows into the Santa Cruz River. The Santa Cruz River in turn flows downstream, eventually joining the Rio Grande.

We cannot achieve our goal without our indigenous partners at the Santa Clara Pueblo, which is a federally recognized tribe and sovereign nation located at the confluence of the Santa Cruz River and the Rio Grande. The people living in its over 2,000 residences are descendants of the Ancestral Puebloans, the original indigenous culture that thrived in the Southwest and whose ancestral dwellings are found throughout the area, including at Mesa Verde National Park and Chaco Canyon National Historical Park. Daniel Denipah, the Pueblo’s Forestry Department Director, has overseen impressive restoration work throughout the 90 square mile reservation.

Just remember that BDAs aren’t nearly as good as beavers. They never even repair themselves after washing out!

Now, in partnership with Defenders, he and his team are working to restore ecological function to a stretch of the Santa Cruz River that runs dry every summer. We will install beaver dam analogues together, which combined with the outreach work being conducted upstream, will help achieve our water conservation goals.

In the future, we wish to stand along the mighty Rio Grande, look up at Truchas peak and know that, with the help of beavers, the rocky rivers cascading down it are now flowing year-round, providing abundant water for both wildlife and people.

Beavers are up for their job. Let them help.