I came home Saturday feeling like I had been gone for 4 years, not 4 days. I can’t seem to catch up with the news or the rhythm of things since I’ve been away. Saturday night helped though. A local author had attended the conference and wanted to see the beavers so off we went. There was full turnout and great visibility of our three kits. My favorite part, though, was seeing the new dam.
Have you noticed it yet? Walk towards the end of the footbridge and look down the overflow channel heading towards amtrak. This is part of the scraped area that the city made to accommodate a broader flood plain. Although we had initially worried about the process removing food from the beavers, it has turned out to be a blessing. Not only do the wetlands make more habitat for nesting ducks, they also serve as a pressure release valve for the secondary dam. In high flow the water is channeled into this side passage, and the dam takes less of a hit.
Well now our smallest kit, (formerly referred to as ‘dainty’), has taken it upon himself to build a tiny dam in the channel. There was always a gnarled log in the path of the water which he wisely used as an anchor to attach mud and reeds. The short dam is mostly tules, and allow me to assure you, it is entirely adorable. Jon watched him working on it fastidiously one morning and was thoroughly impressed. Saturday night we saw the other kits checking it out.
Although we’ve seen every beaver working on every dam, it does seem like the beavers have particular dams they are more associated with. GQ seems primarily responsible for the secondary dam by the footbridge, while Dad is in charge of the primary dam with the flow device. And the beaver formerly know as dainty is definitely in charge of the damlet.
Sniff. They grow up so fast.
