Did you ever play this game at a party or on a road trip? You say three inscrutable things about your life, like ‘I played bass in high school, My first paid job was as a peanut, and I never smoked marijuana’. And your companions have to spot the lie. It’s a fairly fun way to pass the time. (Word of advice – always think of the lie first, or your delivery will give the whole thing away.)
Well this morning we have two lovely things about beavers, and one that’s fairly dismal and packed with lies, so I’ll let you pick which one is which. The first comes with an email I received this morning from Bob and Jean of Canada who did a lovely photo essay on some beavers along the Oxtongue river in Algonquin park in Ontario. You will have to go check them out themselves because the photos don’t allow shares, but consider this an appetizer:
Promise me you’ll go look and maybe leave a BEAVERS RULE comment on the site?
More alarm from Montana Audubon Conservation Education Center. Seems the wire fencing they were forced to install (against their will when folks didn’t want them to kill beavers) hasn’t worked because those selfish beavers really, really want to eat. Oh and Apropos of nothing, the temperature today is -19.
Bucky beaver, friends gnaw down 50 trees near Billings
The large rodent stirred up a fuss in October by gnawing down about 50 trees surrounding ponds at the Audubon Conservation Education Center, south of Billings close to Riverfront Park.
It’s a popular natural area. There was talk of trapping and killing the beaver to save the trees, but that idea was rejected after a public outcry.
The trees were fenced off from the busy beaver, using heavy wire and posts pounded into the ground. That worked for some trees but not for others. Bucky has tunneled under fences to reach the trees and has gone over the top of other wires, or pulled them down. Bucky is a fairly big beaver. One estimate by the center’s staff put him at close to 80 pounds.
“I’ll tell you, they are tenacious,” said Darcie Vallant, Audubon Center director.
Very tenacious, Darcie. Almost as if they’re very lives depended on it!
Sigh.
And last but never least our own Bob Rust sends this photo of one small beaver taken last night around 10 at the location of the third dam, which has been getting a lot of attention lately. A lot of building with reeds too. Reed! Is that you? (In fact, more than the secondary, which could mean that we’ll have to swap the names soon!)
