Last night on the footbridge we were treated to a beaver show with a cast of at least three characters. It all started with a visitor from the ‘new’ bank hole under the cottonwood tree. He sauntered around picking choice willow and brought the branches back to eat or share. Then a second beaver emerged, who (not to be outdone in offerings) took a lovely choice branch OFF the dam and brought it back to the second lodge. Before a third beaver came from upstream and crossed over the secondary before making his ambling way downstream.
It has been a long time since we saw three beavers at once! While this one was coming down another was eating a strawberry under the bridge!
Because our beavers have excellent timing, a family of three generations just happened to be together walking on their evening stroll. Grandma, Grandpa, Mom and Dad, and a charming little girl watched in awe. When I described what was happening and invited them to the beaver festival they said they had been last year and had a wonderful time! Were beavers nocturnal? Could beavers hold their breath? Did they ever eat fish? After watching one beaver mud the dam the child soberly announced that she wanted to BE a beaver, and clarified to mom that this aspiration exceeded even her decision to be a fairy.
I of course understood exactly what she meant.
All in all, it was excellent beaver viewing. Warm and with primarily benign homeless sightings. The most threatening was a thuggy youth who left his other thuggy friends to come stand with us on the bridge and ask questions. Did that pipe they put through the other dam work? Will we need another one? Is their a nest somewhere? He was particularly surprised to see a tail slap because he had never witnessed one before. After the excitement he wasn’t so thuggy, and he and his friends didn’t bother anyone. Before the solstice steals our evening sun away, I would definitely advise making the trip to watch for yourself.
