Cheryl and Lory were down on kitwatch last night and met Moses Silva who proudly displayed footage of Mom beaver with her new kit from 3:00 am that morning. He had been out at 1:00 all week and seen nothing so decided to stay all night! He was happy to share the news, but apparently not the footage. We’ll get the little tyke (and his brother or sisters?) soon. In the meantime, congratulations Martinez, it’s a beaver!
As if that wasn’t good enough news, an amazing workshop will be making its way down the Pacific Coast with the help of NOAA, USFW and PSU.
1-day workshops for practitioners, landowners, land managers and regulators
Nov. 20, 2014 – Juneau, AK
Jan. 14, 2015 – Seattle, WA
Jan 21 &22, 2015 – Portland, OR
Feb. 12, 2015 – Weed, CA
To Register go here.
Course Fee: $50
Presenters:
Michael M. Pollock, Ph.D. Chris E. Jordan, Ph.D. Janine Castro, Ph.D.
Gregory Lewallen Ecosystems Analyst Mathematical Ecologist Fluvial Geomorphologist Graduate Student
NOAA Fisheries NOAA Fisheries US Fish & Wildlife Service Portland State University
NWF Science Center NWF Science Center & NOAA Fisheries
These workshops will be offered for a nominal fee through a partnership with US Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA Fisheries, and Portland State University, Environmental Professional Program.
Using beaver to restore streams is rapidly gaining acceptance as a cost-effective technique to improve aquatic habitat, especially for salmonids. Regulatory and institutional obstacles are being reduced or removed as scientific advances continue to demonstrate that beaver can restore stream habitat far more effectively, and at a much lower cost, than many traditional stream restoration approaches.
Join us for an intensive 1-day workshop symposium for the beta release of a state-of-the-science manual regarding the use of beaver to restore streams. Workshops will be interactive with the audience as we walk through the manual and describe its use to facilitate the restoration of streams. We will provide assessment tools for determining how, where, and when to use beaver in stream restoration. Also included will be a discussion of the regulatory process and how to maximize the probability of successfully obtaining permits.
As a leader in aquatic habitat restoration, your feedback on this document is very important to us and necessary to create an effective tool for restoration using beaver. We encourage you and your colleagues to attend a workshop and to spread the word. Please let us know if you would like to join us and/or if you know of particular groups who may want to attend by responding to this announcement, so that we may adjust the number of workshops as necessary.
Thank you and we look forward to hearing back from you.
For more information contact: Mary Ann Schmidt, maryanns@pdx.edu 503-725-2343
Michael Pollock contacted me a few weeks ago about how to get the word out. (he actually introduced me to Mary Ann as a kind of ‘beaver Maven‘ which ignorance forced me to go look up! After the initial glow wore off, I and lots of others implored for a Northern California appearance.
Yesterday Mary Ann wrote me that they are looking at just such a venue. Did I have any suggestions about a meeting place that could accommodate up to 50 attendees? I introduced her to Jeff Baldwin at Sonoma State who is very interested in the idea. And also suggested to the head of SRF that it might be worth combining it with the salmonid conference in Santa Rosa next year. Dana Stolzman wrote back very interested in the idea and I think everyone’s talking, which means if we just sit tight the conference may come to US!
(Maven!)
Meanwhile I’ve been working hard to get the word out about the festival. Hopefully we’ll have an fullhouse in the park that day, and a full cast of new beaver kit characters to feature! Stay tuned.
Five interactive workshops focused on the use of beaver in aquatic restoration will be offered from January through April, 2015. Workshops are intended for land owners/managers, and restoration funders, reviewers, and practitioners who are actively involved in aquatic ecosystem restoration. There will be an opportunity to sign up as a peer reviewer of the draft Beaver Restoration Guidelines at each of the workshops, or request to be a reviewer by e-mailing Janine_M_Castro@fws.gov.
