Postcards From the Edge

Beavers: The cure for what ails you.

heidi08 Beaver Behavior, Beavers, Beavers and Frogs, Beavers elsewhere, Who's saving beavers now? August 13, 2014

At-Risk Columbia Spotted Frogs: Factors Influencing Conservation

USGS researchers, including scientist Robert Arkle, examined existing data on spotted frog occurrence, abundance and habitat to understand factors influencing habitat quality, habitat connectivity and climate suitability in the Great Basin. Preliminary results suggest that the area of the Great Basin with suitable climates for spotted frogs has already decreased over the past 100 years and will continue to decrease substantially over the next 100 years. Genetic research suggests connectivity between adjacent occupied sites is currently low, while sub-populations are isolated from one another.

USGS research suggests that management tools, such as beaver reintroduction, grazing management and non-native trout control efforts may promote conservation of the Columbia spotted frog in the Great Basin.

So NOAA, USFS, and USGS think beaver reintroduction is a good idea to increase habitat for threatened aquatic species. While USDA and CDFG merrily continue to kill them, ignoring the trickle down effect that eliminating each beaver dam will have on a rapidly drying planet. How long does it take for such simple wisdom to pass through government bureaucracy?

Let’s just say I wouldn’t want to be a columbia spotted frog.

Word this morning is that Utah is truly having another beaver festival, and they’re paying for me to come talk about our beavers in Martinez. It’s in Cedar City and I’ll tell you more details when I know them. The event is organized, of course, by the Mary Obrien and the Grand Canyon Trust where practically all good news about beavers originate. Considering Mary was the inspiring voice in the wilderness a million years ago when this all started, and now she wants me to come speak, I’m pretty honored.

Beavers busting out all over!

heidi08 Beaver Art, Beavers and Birds, Creative Solutions, Educational, Environmental, Friends of Martinez Beavers June 30, 2014

Our ad in Bay Nature’s August issue just came out. We’re nicely placed in the upper right hand corner of page 17. Thanks Bay Nature for promoting our beavers! And Amelia for the awesome artwork.

And just in case the nature crowd misses the ad in BN, check out the article in this month’s newsletter for the Mt. Diablo Audubon. The editor kindly allotted me 300 word to convince bird lovers to come to a beaver festival. I am very proud of this particular work. In addition to being one of the most carefully crafted and pithy things I think I ever wrote, it is also exactly 300 words.

Except for the last sentence about MDAS having a booth. Ellis added that.There’s a new chapter of meet the characters for the Beaver Believers film, and it’s not me, but it should be someone you know. In case you don’t recognize her right away, this is the beaver magician Mary O’brien who attended our festival in 2010. She has, along the way inspired me, delighted me, encouraged me, exasperated me and terrified me. Not necessarily in that order.

Recognize her now? This should help…

All in a day’s work…

heidi08 Beavers, Environmental, Friends of Martinez Beavers March 20, 2014

Yesterday I was up at 5 getting nervous for the conference. Talking beavers to a roomful of fish-biologists? What if I forgot what to say? What if the computer goes blank? What if what if what if? Jon drove me to the memorial hall where in the span of 5 minutes I was warmly greeted by Mike Callahan, Michael Pollock, Rick Lanman, Mary O’brien, Brock Dolman, Kate Lundquist, Sherry and Ted Guzzi and I thought, oh, I know these people, I can do this.

Tim Robinson was leading the session, and what I hadn’t understood before is that he had presented at a conference some pretty uncheerful information about beavers and gotten a SLEW of heated responses and emails which made him curious to learn more. I think an old Martinez supporter (GK) had tipped me off to his presentation at the delta conference, and I had written him an eyeful. To his amazing credit he actually sought me out and invited me to this talk along with a team of the most intelligent beaver advocates on the planet.

Rick started the day and competently went through the evidence about where beaver belonged historically. Eli went next and showed where they are right now. Then it was my turn and as always, talking about the Martinez Beaver story with footage and photos was very well received. A tech woman on hand made sure every one’s talk went perfectly and it was an awesome morning, By 10:30 I felt relaxed and pleased.

After the break, Michael Pollock presented on steelhead and beavers from the bridge creek data. (Does he ever get nervous? I don’t think so.) Then Tim presented on the unique challenges he faced with beavers on the Santa Ynez river which is a controlled water management system that releases water for the lower valleys. Then Kate talked policy and Mike Callahan talked about his adaptions to flow devices to allow salmon passage.

It was an amazing morning. After lunch they all went for a beaver fieldtrip on the Santa Ynez, and Jon and I dashed home to get things ready for dinner after a well-earned picnic in the sun looking at the beach.

I had invited folks for dinner at 6:30 but at 6:15 Mary called and said the fieldtrip had run long and they just got back. I wondered honestly if anyone would show and wistfully thought about the number of enchiladas we would be forced to eat on our own, but by 7 Mary, Michael Pollock (and his very smart tribal attorney girlfriend Karen), Sherry and Ted, and Mike Callahan were all there. We sat on the deck and drank beer while the sky darkened and the air cooled and then we funneled inside to Jon’s enchiladas and guacamole where our very small table hosted the most intelligent lively cheerful beaver conversation this side of the atlantic.

Somewhere in this day, I had the feeling of heavy accomplishment. Like a massive boulder I had been cheerfully pushing up a bumpy hill for seven years had just reached the top. I felt like beaver momentum was finally turning and it felt both relieving and weirdly a little sad – almost as if I was missing something.

I think now that what I was missing was the naive me of 7 years ago that foolishly started this journey in the first place. Without any of these companions, she felt like every part of this job was up to her thinking, planning and execution. I remember her as passionate and fearless, and I learned so much from her commitment. I am so glad she was (is) a part of my life. But I’m glad she’s not alone any more and really glad that dam rock is up the hill.

I know there will be other hills and valleys. But today I will sit in the sun and rest.

A Steppe Up

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, City Reports, Creative Solutions, Environmental February 18, 2013

Do you remember, waiting for the dentist or the pediatrician, reading those old highlights magazines when you were a kid? There was one page called “Goofus and Gallant” that was about two boys the same age, one who did impulsive or badly planned things and one who did helpful, generous things. I suppose it was to encourage children to think about their choices and what kind of actions they wanted to take, (although where the girls were in this morality play is anyone’s guess). Well, sometimes when I look at the Grand Canyon Trust I think of Goofus and Gallant. They do such deft, coordinated, elegant and hardy work. And we do….a beaver festival? If Worth A Dam is a candle in the wind they are a 1.2-megawatt SunPower Tracker. Don’t take my word for it. Just watch for yourself.

This is some great beaver marketing from our friends. Somehow they just keep managing better and bolder things, (and securing better funding!) Take a moment to watch this smart look at what beavers can do for the habitat. Jeremy Christensen starts the film, and our old friend Mary O’brien appears at the end.

Here she is checking out the tiles on Escobar bridge.

I guess even ‘Goofus’ can manage a few good actions once in a while. Oh and after her visit they decided to have their first beaver festival last summer.

Just sayin’.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

heidi08 Beavers elsewhere, Educational, Environmental, Festival October 4, 2012

Here’s the news you’ve all been waiting for! The schedule is up and running for the third and best ever State of the Beaver Conference in Oregon, featuring such wonders as Sherri Tippie, Mary O’brien, John Hadidian, Jimmy Taylor and Mike Callahan. If you don’t recognize any of those names check out the Podcast page on this website because they’re all featured. Oh and yours truly. Should be a dam memorable event.

When’s the last time you drove up the coast? I’d book your reservations today!

Finally received some photos from the beaver festival in Utah! Check out those tails and wonder for a second where you’ve seen that design before? I’m so glad they enjoyed themselves and got kids involved. Now they just have to pump up attendance numbers so that more people can benefit from their effort!

Here’s another photo I particularly liked! Children earning things by learning facts about beavers. Gosh that sounds familiar. Go look at the rest here and think about how cool it would be to have Sherri Tippie and Mary O’brien at your festival in person!