Tag: Alicia Leow-Dyke

CYMRU: AFANC

heidi08 Beavers June 16, 2020

There is almost nothing I enjoy better than a new word about beavers. Unless its spending the morning looking up the new word about beavers. Now if I lived in a the home of my dreams I would do it in a massive archane library with vaulted ceilings and ancient texts. But the internet will do handily. Thank you, Wales.

Ecosystem engineers: should beavers be introduced back into Welsh rivers?

“When you start looking into some of the history books, you actually find that there is lots of evidence of beavers going back hundreds and hundreds of years and there are references in written literature, and in folklore in Wales,” said Alicia Leow-Dyke.

One of the Welsh words for beaver is ‘afanc’, which in Welsh mythology is a type of river monster resembling a crocodile or giant beaver. The word ‘afanc’ can also be spotted in some place names, such as Llyn-yr-Afanc, which means ‘Beaver’s Pool’.

Since 2005, however, the Welsh Beaver Project has been investigating the feasibility of reintroducing beavers in specific and suitable areas of Wales in the future. With this in mind, the Welsh Beaver Project is working with Natural Resources Wales to obtain a licence for a first release of beavers into the Welsh wild.

“We’re trying to put the right information out there to demonstrate that beavers in the right place can be very suitable and beneficial to wildlife and people,” said Alicia Leow-Dyk

Oh my goodness! a BEAVER-DILE! or Croc-beaver! I’m so excited. There must be so many amazing welsh artists who have taken a stab at this. When you think of it it almost makes a kind of sense. They can both hold their breath a very long time. They both have amazingly strong jaws and remarkable teeth. And they are actually both considered keystone species… Well alligators so I assume crocs because of the space they create for other species when they use their tails to make a mud hole and lay their eggs.

Although beavers are wayyyyyyyyyyyyy cooler.

At the moment the Welsh Beaver Project is looking at the Dyfi catchment in west Wales as a potential location.

“At the same time we’re developing plans for a beaver enclosure on a Wildlife Trust reserve and we’re just waiting for some feedback from Natural Resources Wales,” said Alicia Leow-Dyke.

Not everyone is happy, however. Another example of a successful conservation project in Wales has been otters. The Cardiff Otter Project is a leading research centre on otter conservation and research, and it partners with several other institutions.

Dr Elizabeth Chadwick, Head of the Cardiff Otter Project, said that reintroduction of beavers were likely to face similar opposition, which is concern about the impact on fish in rivers.

“Some negative attitudes toward otter population recoveries include issues with otter predation on fish,” said Dr Elizabeth Chadwick, Head of the Cardiff Otter Project.

“Some people have used this as an argument against beavers, based on a misconception that beavers also eat fish – which is not the case. In fact, there is a lot of evidence that beaver introductions help boost fish populations.”

As if an otter non profit could help a beaver nonprofit! HRMPH! Well I suppose the is several generations of poor fools who read Naria as children and believed beavers ate fish. How many times must you be told? Lions aren’t religious and beavers are vegetarians!

The Welsh Beaver Project, however, are keen to point to a number of positive aspects of reintroducing beavers to Wales, particularly in relation to flooding.

Beavers are excellent ecosystem engineers: their dams slow the flow of rivers, so that when there is heavy rain it takes much longer to flow down and reach towns or villages.

In 2015 two family groups of Eurasian beavers were reintroduced in the River Otter catchment in south-east Devon as part of the River Otter Beaver Trial. Findings showed that peak flows of water in villages exposed to risks of flooding have significantly reduced thanks to the upstream beaver dams.

“There are many landowners who would like to see beavers back because of ecological and environmental benefits,” said Alicia Leow-Dyke. “They want the beavers to help to prevent the risk of flooding in the land if the dams are in the right places.”

There are other advantages to river biodiversity too.

“Their activities can improve the health of rivers and lochs, reduce flooding and the impacts of droughts, and contribute to carbon sequestration,” said Richard Bunting, a spokesperson from Rewilding Britain, a charity that looks at the restoration of nature and at reconnecting people with the natural world.

“They coppice and fell trees, letting light into woodlands, enabling plants to flourish and stimulating new tree growth.”

Beavers activities also boost the presence of other wild species: birds, small mammals, reptiles, amphibians have been seen increasing where beavers are present.

“This can encourage reptiles to move in, and water poles. Otters can all benefit from beavers increase in habitat,” said Alicia Leow-Dyke, Welsh Beaver Project Officer. In the future, beavers in Welsh rivers might also be able to bring more tourism to the area, they say.

Well of course. Beavers can do all those things for you and much, much, more. By the way, in case you didn’t recognize it, that picture above is of Little Beaver and the Echo in Wales. I think the artist is actually Welsh.

“Management costs are a tiny fraction of the value of the benefits of beaver reintroduction,” said Richard Brazier, Professor of Earth Surface Processes at the University of Exeter and Chair of River Otter Beaver Trial Science and Evidence Forum.

Beavers were reintroduced to Scotland in 2009 and now enjoy protected status there. Several beavers reintroduction trials have also proved successful in Europe, for example in Bavaria, Germany.

Perhaps Wales will be next, and the ‘afanc’ will no longer be relegated to Welsh myth but become a visible, and helpful, part of our lives once more.

Well said. It takes a little resourcefulness to solve beaver problems, but beaver rewards are countless! I especially want to see Lizzie Harper (who lives in wales) painting beavers with her glorious attention to detail. I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t look like crocodiles.

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The other side

heidi08 Beavers, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, Beavers or Social Ambasadors, Creative Solutions, Educational, Environmental, Who's blaming beavers now? October 16, 2017

Things are moving in a good direction in the wine country. Yesterday at the Napa community meeting they stopped talking about the crisis and started talking about recovery. (Which will also be a crisis, but of a different, long-term, unfolding kind.) I hear from the artist who wants to help us this year and she and her husband are safely back at their home home, which survived on the very edge of the burning on the Silverado trail. I can’t imagine what it’s like to return to a home that’s now in a charred ghost town, but I’m so happy they are among the lucky ones. The fire never reached downtown Napa, so I assume Rusty, Robin and our beavers are doing okay. The whole region will need lots of support and rebuilding for a long time to come.

Meanwhile the beaver campaign in Wales is going strong and they have successfully proposed a five year license that will give the animals a toe-hold in the country. They must be doing well because the big liars have turned out in full force, and are tweeking their arguments to sound convincing without appearing negative.

Opinions sought over beaver reintroduction in Wales

Members of the public will be asked to have their say on plans to reintroduce beavers into the Welsh countryside. Depending on the level of response and issues raised, a final decision could come before the end of the year. Supporters of the plan believe they will bring environmental and economic benefits, but others remain unconvinced.

Beavers were once native to Britain but were hunted to extinction for their fur in the Middle Ages. The animal has been reintroduced into Scotland and England in recent years and Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is currently considering an application for a licence to release ten pairs of beavers into the River Cowyn in Carmarthenshire.

The application has been submitted by Wildlife Trusts Wales and the Carmarthenshire-based Bevis Trust, which has three families of beavers penned on its land ready to be released. Bevis Trust founder Nick Fox believes the experience of beaver reintroduction elsewhere proves that the animals will bring big benefits to the Welsh countryside.

He told BBC Radio Wales’ Eye on Wales programme: “Beavers have a key role to play in the ecosystem. They build dams in the slower-flowing small rivers – not in big rivers – and those dams act as natural filters for pollutants and sediment.”

Alicia Leow-Dyke, who oversees the Welsh Beaver Project for Wildlife Trusts Wales, argued beavers would help improve biodiversity.

“Many studies have shown that where you have beavers you have a much richer biodiversity, you have a mosaic of different habitats – and that’s possibly something we have lost in the United Kingdom,” she added.

That sounds pretty persuasive. Better bring in the big guns to refute it and smoke up their objections a bit so no one realizes their just stubborn babies who are upset when they don’t get their own way. Go!

But Mark Lloyd, the chief executive of the Angling Trust, is not convinced that now is the right time to be considering such a project.

“There are lots of other really pressing priorities for the water environment that NRW should be focussing on rather than pet projects that are really “nice to have” but it’s not clear what the benefits are,” he said.

That is a concern for botanist Ray Woods, who has visited the River Otter in Devon where beavers are now in residence under licence.

“I asked the question, “What are they eating” and they just said, “Sorry Ray, we don’t know”. What’s been the impact on all these masses of mosses and liverworts and lichens that are absolutely bang full of useful pharmaceuticals?“

My jaw is hanging open as I type this. You’re worried that the beavers will eat up the lichens and then you can’t use them for pharmaceuticals? You do know that lichens grow in trees right? And beavers don’t climb trees. Do you think there is ANY possibility on God’s green earth that Ray was honestly ever told “I’m sorry we don’t know” when he asked what are they eating? Literally everyone is eager to answer the questions and start a conversation about beavers. Either that is a baldfaced lie or the only person he actually asked was a janitor on the train en route. And I can guess which one. Grr.

NRW has completed its initial assessment of the licence application and asked for some further information for the Bevis Trust and Wildlife Trusts Wales. Once that has been received there will be a short consultation. Depending on the level of response and issues raised, a final decision could come before the end of the year.

I’m going to guess that they’re leaning in the “Yes” direction and everyone knows it, because those two special lies aren’t the kind you make from a position of strength. They are what you say when you know you’re losing and you want to frame the argument in a new way out of desperation. Keep pushing Wales, you’re on the HOME STRETCH.

Yesterday I started making a list of the items I plan to ask for at the silent auction this year. In doing so I came across a lovely image designed by Sarah MacDonald of Into the Wilds. Her original water color was so lovely I couldn’t resist ’embellishing’ it.

Follow-ups and Flourishes

heidi08 Beaver Anatomy, Beaver Art, Beaver Behavior, Beaver Chewing, Beavers and Insects, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, City Reports, Creative Solutions, Environmental, featured, Who's saving beavers now? September 16, 2017

I thought I’d share a little about the odds and ends that followed my last few postings. One was about the water week events in Whatcom WA. You might remember that the paper said there’d be a showing of the film “Beavers in the Ecosystem” which I wanted to find out about. Turns out the paper got it wrong, it wasn’t actually a film but an event lead by the North Sound Baykeeper for Clean Water Services, Lee First. I got in touch with Lee through our friend Ben Dittbrenner of Beavers NorthWest. Seems Lee contacted Ben looking for properties with beavers on them that might allow a tour for his guided event and talk.

Lee impressed me right away with this response to my letter:

Hi Heidi, it’s not a film, it’s a site tour. I’ll take photos during the tour, and I’ll probably write a little story about the tour. I love beavers!

As far as I know there are two people in all the world who collect a city salary and love beavers. And now I know both of them! There surely aren’t any such people in Martinez.

The other follow up comes from my column on the story accusing the Welsh beavers of ruining the sequel film date. I got an email from Alicia Leow-Dyke of the Welsh Beaver Project thanking me for the graphic.

Thank you Heidi, that means a lot. I was so annoyed when I read the original article, beavers being blamed without any evidence! Someone has to stick up for them! I love the graphic!! That’s brilliant! Would it be OK for me to use that graphic in our talks or on our website? I also love the beaver cushion that has been sent to you from the Ukraine. I am going to have to buy one for myself!

I told her of course she could use it, and showed her the photo of our kit where it’s from. Graphic Designer Libby Corliss didn’t work with us long, but the silhouettes she made that summer from Cheryl’s photos have been a lasting treasure I rely on again and again.

Onto the treats of the day, this time Parks and Recreation Department of Calgary, which is about 400 miles north of Montana across the Canadian border. Seems they just updated their beaver webpage and WOW they did an amazing job. Even when I read it the third time this morning, I was still surprised and impressed.

Beavers

Beavers have found an inviting home in Calgary, with its two rivers, abundant green space, and lack of predators. In recent years, their population has grown, with lodges in various locations along the Bow and Elbow rivers, in storm water ponds and wetlands.

Beavers are good for our environment

Beavers play an important ecological role in Calgary’s waterways. Their dams can create ponds that provide habitat for other wildlife and help surrounding vegetation to flourish. The ponds and wetlands are very good at storing water, and can help reduce the effects of smaller floods and hold water during droughts.

Water flowing through dammed areas is naturally purified, and after a dam has broken, fertilizer created from the decomposing material in the dam will spread downstream.

I promise I haven’t embellished this or edited to make it look better. This is the ACTUAL website for Calgary and it starts by describing how lucky we are to have them. Then it gets around to talking about problems, but in a pretty reasonable way.

Beavers also present some challenges

Because conditions are so good, Calgary’s beaver population has grown in recent years. This can cause problems for our forested areas, infrastructure and property, and the beavers themselves.

A single adult beaver can cut down about 200 trees in a year. With each lodge housing four to six beavers, wooded areas can be devastated in a short period of time. This is harmful to other wildlife that rely on the trees for habitat. Beaver dams can also cause flooding that affects property, and in some cases, can damage storm drains and weirs that can be very expensive to repair.

Okay, that’s most reasonable. People can legitimately have concerns about these animals. There’s only a single sentence I take issue with.

“Without natural predators, beaver populations can grow to be unsustainable.”

Ahh Calgary, you were doing so well up until them. Did you never read that beavers were territorial? Did you never think that when the streams were full of beavers the new ones would have to look elsewhere for a place to call their own? I would be disappointed in them, but they quickly redeemed themselves.

The City’s approach to beaver management

The City’s practice is to try and strike a balance between health of the surrounding areas and the wellbeing of the beavers.

When required, The City uses different measures to protect trees and property to make our river parks unappealing to beavers. Depending on the situation, we may use a combination of the following:

Placing metal wiring around tree trunks.
Planting varieties of trees along the shore that are less palatable.
Placing under-dam drains to control water levels.

We consider all other options before turning to trapping. However, in some cases it is required. When we do remove beavers, we use traps that are designed to kill instantly. The traps are placed under water for the protection of dogs, park users and other wildlife, and are checked daily.

There’s a final paragraph on why they can’t relocate beavers that are causing issues instead of trapping them, but honestly this is ALL I WISH from any city beaver management policy. Protect trees. Plant Willow. Install flow devices.

Consider it my version of “Eat. Pray. Love.”

If every city tried to do these things before trapping I would be over the moon with joy. Honestly, this is the best and most sensibly proactive policy I have ever read.

They even have a video teaching how to wrap trees. Be still my heart.

I expect a mass exodus of beaver supporters moving to Calgary right away. Honestly, my bags are nearly packed.

One more present for Heidi in the Odds and Ends category. This lovely website I came across in my travels is called beaverlikemammals.com, with the actual tagline “A friendly place to post sightings of beaver-like mammals” which she dubs BLM’s.

Really.

Capture BLM
abbreviation
Beaver Like Mammal.

Everyone wants to make a contribution to society, to leave their own little mark on the world. This website is my mark. It provides a public space where people can post sightings of beaver-like mammals (BLMs). Did you spot a BLM at the corner of 10th Street and West Main? Does a BLM emerge from the bushes by your back porch every evening around 6pm? Did you catch a glimpse of a BLM out of your car window on the way home on Thursday night? Submit your sighting to beaverlikemammals.com!

There is a page for submitting a sighting and your observation will be listed by your state. Most of the entries she has look like woodchucks with the occasional squirrel. I don’t see any actual beavers since back in 2007. But she definitely gave me a gift.

From now on, the next photo of a nutria I see on a news article about beavers I’m calling it a BLM.

Afancod for all!

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beaver Chewing, Beavers, Beavers and Insects, Beavers and salmon, Beavers and trout, Beavers and water, Beavers elsewhere, Friends of Martinez Beavers, Who's saving beavers now? January 17, 2017

Wales is on the beaver Warpath, and something tells me they aren’t giving up on their quest to reintroduce beavers any time soon. When Scotland gave the all clear they were immediately lining up to be next. They will be presenting at the beaver conference next month in Oregon. It’s pretty generous them to all do this separately, so we get to prolong the discussion of beaver benefits as long as possible. After they succumb, we still get all of England to do the promoting! Then what?

Proposals to reintroduce beavers to parts of Wales

A SPECIAL talk is to be held next week over proposals to reintroduce beavers to parts of Wales.

Welsh beaver project officer Alicia Leow-Dyke will be opening up the elusive world of beavers at a free event at the Centre for Alternative Technology on 24 January.

Alicia, of the Radnorshire Wildlife Trust, will talk about beaver ecology, the history and future of beavers in Wales and the impacts that beavers have on ecosystems, looking at how this can benefit many species, including humans.

In a report by the WBAI they said: “Beavers are often considered a ‘keystone’ species in aquatic environments, with an ability to modify riverine and wetland habitats to the benefit of many other species, with few negative effects.”

That sentence makes me excited and nervous in exactly equal measures. Yes, beavers modify rivers and benefit species but oh they bring a few negative effects for humans. Or at lets call them ‘challenges’. Truly solvable and worth doing but unfortunately not all people are up for a challenge. I’ll let them know when I get to meet them (assuming the sled dogs can get us both there). Here they are listed on the agenda for the State of the beaver conference:

5:00 pm – 5:45 pm

“The Long Road: Returning Beavers to Wales.”

Adrian Lloyd Jones, Wildlife Trusts Wales. Alicia Leow-Dyke, Wildlife Trusts Wales

Nice photo published this morning from Jestephotography I thought deserved sharing. His description says:

While out at Elk Island National Park this fall I stopped to set up on a family of 5 beavers , mom n pop with 3 offspring doing what beavers do. Most of the time they where at a mid distance but this fellow decided the log right in front of me needed a good chewing. I was belly down in the mud with my lens poking out between the cat tails for this one.