Did you see our nice article in the Gazette? Apparently beaver art is officially launched! Monday’s school board meeting will start with a short presentation on the mural by EBAG artists FRO and Randy. Hopefully we’ll generate more interest in the beavers - their impact on the habitat and the community. It’s a busy night. I can’t be there (day job!), Jon can’t be there because he has to do a “beaver tour” which someone bought at the silent auction. FRO and Randy will carry the night and Kathi will be there in her ’school board capacity’. Worth A Dam is apparently in high demand at the moment.

Speaking of which I got a nice response from the columnist in the Missouri Bambi-myth article saying he was actually pro-beaver and ‘never lose your passion’ (!) and then a cordial letter from the trapper in question whom I had never written. He explained that they do use flow devices in public lands but offer only trapping on private property. He assured me that they offered information about wrapping trees and told people that trapping was a short term solution.  I’m not sure why writing an unknown woman who had never contacted him was a good use of his time, but there it is.

To tell the truth, the website has been getting a weird amount of traffic lately. I got an offer to host adds for pay and a threat for an international lawsuit for writing about a certain iconic-bra-appearing product. I did what I could to talk my way out of both for the time being. The really exciting news is that beaver-friend and Worth A Dam benefactor Scott Artis is going to begin an upgrade to the site Sunday. Site designer Michael Cronin taught me as much as he could before he moved away, but he never taught me how to do an upgrade. Now technology has moved forward without us and this website is like a tricycle on the freeway. Hopefully we’ll get new wheels soon. There may be moments of the look of the page changing but don’t worry, we’ll be excitingly upgraded and restored eventually!

Once reassured that he wasn’t a bit hurt in his acrobatics, many laughs were had by all humans present, There may even have been a beaver snicker or two from his siblings. The new ‘do’ lasted a good 20 minutes because apparently beavers don’t fix their hair for self-conscious reasons.  Last night all three kits and GQ came from upstream. Apparently the more things change the more they stay the same.

I spent the weekend (no, really!) working  on this tribute to the patriarch of our Martinez Beavers. He’s the kind of worker who finishes what he starts and takes on more than his fair share. I have never seen Dad waste effort or do anything that didn’t make solid sense. The night after Skip took the dam down by three feet he and mom were a flurry of work rushing to save it. Dad was using his massive strength to rip tules out of the ground to staunch the flow. I wasn’t there that night  but I’ve heard people were watching in awe at his tireless effort. He never minds a childish helper or two, although I have seen him quietly perfect their contribution after they leave the area. I was so happy to see him with a kit this week I knew he needed his own  compilation and recognition.

Happy Labor Day!

I

In simple terms, carrying capacity is the number of individual species an environment can support without significant negative impacts to other living things and/or the environment. When it happens, and we as people get to make the judgments, Todd types suggest “decreases” to put everything back in balance.

Columnist: Gene Fox

Is there a carrying capacity for humans? I’m just asking. Outdoor columnist Gene Fox offers this stark pragmatism about beaver management in Saturday’s Missouri Examiner. He has clearly done exhaustive research on the topic because he says “the beaver is the states largest rodent and number 1 bad-boy’. (I would ask for a reference on that - showing the beavers cause more troubles to homeowners than ants, termites or rats but its a long article and there isn’t time.) He says that beavers have become ‘urbanized’ and suggests that advocates protect them because of the ‘Bambi myth”.

In a similar way that some people are taken in by the “Bambi Myth,” there are those who mistakenly have a “Walden Pond Illusion” of the beaver, which has become urbanized. But the carrying capacity formula is non-emotional, science.

Is there even a Bambi myth? Gosh, I can’t really think of one. Man is bad?

I suppose Gene is implying that the sweet beautiful drawings of the cartoon character ignore the fact that deer chew our plants and disturb our traffic patterns by getting hit by cars and maybe even start fires like bambi’s dad. Or something. He invokes the sportsman-repellent properties of Walden Pond to appeal to the reader’s logic. I suppose what he means to say is that if you have compassion for animals you aren’t rational, and nobody should listen to you anyway.

He goes on to say that ’science’ supports a habit-forming dependence on trappers like the hero described in his article, Todd Meese. Todd is given the impressive qualifications of a ‘damage wildlife biologist’ which sounds as close to a toolbox full of hammers as we are likely to find. (I guess that explains why beavers all look like nails.)

A day or two after the visit, I got a report that two beavers, one 65 pounds and the other 45, had been removed.

Just to be clear, by “removed” he means “killed” - don’t want to be too ‘Bambi’ about this. Looking at the weights I would say he trapped an adult and a yearling. It’s late summer so the colony probably has kits, which he obviously didn’t get. Let’s hope there are some family members left to take care of the young so he can come back next summer and do all it again - and the summer after that, and so on - all those child support checks won’t write themselves.

And quite candidly, a big reason the furbearers have gotten a disproportionate foothold on our turf over the last decade is because trapping has gone out of favor. Less social acceptance, less money in the business. Of course, as population density increases, birth rate will decrease eventually because the death rate will typically increase because of either disease or lack of habitat/food.  Or beavers will move into our backyards through the waste water systems.

Through our wastewater systems? You mean like those pale alligators in the New York Sewer System? Ohh, you mean culverts and drains, all the little waterways that we have co-opted with concrete to become our storm systems. It’s funny how that works, we turn these natural structures into the most unnatural devices and are furious when nature keeps being - well - natural. Like the beavers in Alhambra Creek. Did you ever hear about them? It’s a great story I’ll tell you sometime.

Ok Gene, here’s some science from the Bambi faction. Beavers are a keystone species so every single colony in that housing tract on 291 increases the bird, fish, and wildlife population of the area. Beavers improve water quality,  raise the water table and increase valuable wetlands. Don’t you have some sportsmen in Missouri? Beaver ponds increase important game species like wood duck and trout. In fact there isn’t a single thing you could add to your waterways that would do more to help increase the carrying capacity of the area.

It’s possible you’re not as interested in science when it disconfirms your beliefs. Okay, let’s talk dollars then. There are proven effective and inexpensive tools for managing beavers that offer long-term solutions and will save tax-payer dollars. Beaver Deceivers and Flow Devices will control most any waterway problems and allow the habitat to remain. Wire wrapping or sand-painting of trees will protect property and everyone can benefit from the safe wetlands that beavers create.

If Missouri’s biggest problem really IS the beaver, its because the entire state is using the wrong tools. Instead of encouraging more people to use more hammers, it might be a good idea to introduce a few wrenches and some pliers.

Beavers: Written By Deborah Hodge Illustrated by Pat Stephens

For the last week the arrival of beavers seems to be from downstream rather than upstream. We are used to seeing the kits come out from the upstream lodge and make their way to explore their world and the dam. We even saw a kit lay mud on the primary dam for the very first time this week. Lately though they are reminding us of something Skip Lisle always says “The principal of beaver life is dynamism”.

Beaver change things. Including their habits!

I’ve been frantically looking up references for lodge transitions and see that it is common especially over the summer months for families to go between lodges. Giving a lodge a break can be a good way to lower parasite populations and be close to a different food source. My human sensitivities are irrationally concerned that the family transition TOGETHER as a unit and nobody gets left behind - but they all seem to be keeping track of each other. Dad and the kits showed their most serious engagement ever this week and GQ is in full view with kits seeming to follow him wherever he goes. All the kits still are happy to see eachother and no sibling is ‘less liked’ as far as I can tell.

What will happen? Will the beaver family settle downstream or is this a summer fling similar to the ‘frat house‘ the yearlings experimented with years ago? Are dad and the yearling maintaining separate estates to increase their chances of each attracting a mate? Could the city of Martinez get another famous beaver colony? If so what happens to these kits? Will they become ‘joint custody kits’ shuttled back and forth between lodges? If the family stays together downstream will they still maintain the primary dam or will it become less important real estate? Will Skip’s installation become unnecessary? Or will we end up hiring him again to build three more?

The possibilities are apparently endless. Stay tuned for the next exciting chapter of…”As the colony turns….”

Don’t worry. Baby beavers weren’t on the menu. But carp, minnows, perch and crayfish beware! There’s an otter in town. Two at least, because Moses filmed a huge one just a few days ago and now look!

This was a little fella, long and sleek and fast. Cheryl and Jon dashed about looking for the right place to photograph as he selected the choices spots to fish. He didn’t use the gap to cross the dam (otters hate to be predictable). He crossed on the bank farthest from the street.

Our beaver pond is a haven for fish eaters. The irresistible temptation to fish that captures the fancys of teens who should know better, is even more powerful for Otters. They have nothing but success in those crowded waters, making it worth risking some human contact. He even followed a few fast fish into the round-fence filter for the flow device! I sent this picture to Skip who was very excited about the prospect of being able to demonstrate that 6×6 wire allows wildlife access to the area! He thought the filter needed a loving touch up though, and asked if he should come out before the next storm?

After the otter cleared away, the main feature came out to play. GQ came upstream with three kits in tow looking lovely. All in all it was a pretty exciting evening. What are you doing this weekend?

Photos: Cheryl Reynolds

I couldn’t leave the above title without this…

Children’s Mural Available for Display

Worth A Dam is proud to present the children’s Mural for Alhambra Creek. This colorful and engaging diptych piece was created by a hundred young artists at Beaver Festival III in downtown Martinez and is now available for loaned display. FROgard, of the East Bay Artists Guild, painted the background with help from Randy Stansberry, based on graphic artist Libby Corliss creek map for the area. FRO provided guidance, instruction and a little judicious editing to help the mural come to life.

Each segment is 36″ x 48″and the pair should be hung in tandem. Imaginations were allowed to flourish letting each child share his or her own vision for the beaver habitat: a close look at the artwork shows that in addition to the green heron, baby ducks and beaver family, there is even a pirate beaver with a “hook” claw! One pragmatic child painted a golf bag with a ‘hole in one’ just in case dad would like to play a few rounds at the Beaver Park.

The hidden treasure of Martinez, CA is revealed not just its famous beavers but also in the delightful and caring children that respect Alhambra Creek and its wildlife. Funds and materials for this mural were donated by generous supporters and it is the hope of the children, the artists, and Worth A Dam that it will be seen around the downtown area in Martinez, inspiring each of us to see the wild beauty of the world around them.

If you would like to display the mural in your office, foyey, stairwell or gallery, contact Heidi Perryman at (925) 283-4499  to make arrangements.

This notice went out as of 3:00 pm Wednesday.As of 9 pm last night we already had expressed interest from the superintendent of schools, the Contra Costa Bar Association, and Superior Court. Worth A Dam is feeling like Scarlet at the ball! Thanks FRO and Randy for your outstanding work on this project. Thanks Mitch Wagner (long time hero of another very famous beaver case) for the generous donation. Worth A Dam promises never to let generous donations go to waste!

I stumbled across this beautiful bit of beaver writing by Kathleen Kudlinski for the New Haven Register in CT the other day and thought you would enjoy it too. I was going to just post excepts to whet your appetite, but its so delightful I decided to post the whole thing. As compensation for my thievery you must click on the charming illustration above and go to the website so their statistics record visitors to her article. I like her writing and appreciation very much, but there are 6 or 7 secret things that we know about beavers that she apparently does not. Lets see if you can guess what they are.

The beaver slid off a bank this week, surfacing nearby to stare at us. We stared back, breathless. A midafternoon sighting of this nocturnal animal^₁ seemed magical and fleeting. Except that this beaver did not flee. He swam around in front of his lodge, eyeing us. Were we dangerous? Apparently not². He slapped his broad scaly tail against the water and waited to see if we would flee. We did not. He slapped again. Clearly, we’d interrupted some important beaver business.

His mate would be waiting inside the stick-and-mud lodge they’d built together years ago. Beavers mate for life at 3 and live up to 29 years³. That means this whiskery old guy may have been living in beaver bliss with his darlin’ for over 20 years. Like all beaver parents, they’ll have two or three nearly grown offspring under their roof. Ma beaver had a litter of kits in early spring, while the big, old yearlings stayed on for a while to help with the new young’uns, and then moved out this summer to start new lodges of their own.

The beaver slapped again. Sunshine glittered on his wet fur, his bristly whiskers and the fresh mud he’d slathered onto his lodge. In winter, that mud freezes and will form a great barrier to keep coyotes, foxes, dogs and bears from digging them out. These predators could never reach the beaver’s front door, a hidden underwater entrance leading to a dark, dry den a yard or so across.

The sun could shine on this pond because, over the years, this enterprising couple had gnawed through dozens and dozens of trees, punching a hole in the forest canopy, their massive, ever-growing rodent teeth working like living chainsaws. Saplings fall with a nip or two. We’ve seen these beavers drop two or three medium-size trees in a night. A maple, 16 inches across, is nearly chewed through next to their pond. We took care not to stand underneath it.

Once the beavers fell a maple, birch, willow, aspen, poplar or other fast-growing tree, they strip the bark off. They’re only after the tender, nutritious cambium layer between bark and wood. This time of year, they may eat water lily tubers, clover, apples and the leaves, but their main course is always cambium⁴. To keep at fighting weight, 40 pounds⁵, beavers have to fell many trees just to stay alive. Not one stick of wood goes to waste after it is stripped clean. It is all used in dam- building and maintenance, lodge construction and improvements, or stocking in an underwater cache for midwinter snacking.

All of this busy-beaver activity makes them a keystone species in the ecosystem. A beaver colony changes a moderately productive woodland into a sunny wetland, bursting with life. The beavers’ work supports thousands of species of mammals, fish, turtles, frogs, birds, ducks, dragonflies and a myriad of water insects and invertebrates. Almost half of endangered and threatened species in North America rely upon wetlands, and so do we.

The beavers’ multiple dams slow water flow and absorb excess floodwaters, prevent erosion and raise the local water table. Several feet of silt build up behind old beaver dams. When polluted water trickles through this fine mud, particulates are strained out. Toxins, like pesticides, are broken down by bacterial action or simply the slow trickle of time. Water is far cleaner after it goes through this natural treatment plant.

Once 60 million beavers reported to work in North America. They were hunted and trapped for their glossy brown fur, but that’s not all. We hardly notice the territory-marking scent of a beaver, but two special properties made it sought after. The smell of this “castoreum” is especially long lasting, so perfumers use it as a base ingredient in their products. Also, for some reason, beavers concentrate one chemical, salicin, from willow trees, which is transformed into salicylic acid.

Today, we know that chemical as aspirin, but Native Americans and early settlers sought it for fighting pain^?, lowering fever and reducing inflammation. But it was competition that nearly did the beavers in⁶. We like our land dry for farming and development. Beavers like it wet. They lost. We nearly drove them to extinction by the early 1800s. Now, beavers are on the rebound. There’s nearly 14 million in the United States today. Mostly, that’s because we’ve learned to live with them.

The cranky old beaver slapped his tail one last time at us this past week. We decided to retreat to our cabin. A quick glance back through binoculars showed him already at work again, getting the place in shape for the winter ahead.

Contact Guilford naturalist Kathleen Kudlinski at kathkud@aol.com, or write her in care of the Register, 40 Sargent Drive, New Haven 06511. She is the author of 39 children’s books, including, “Boy Were We Wrong About the Solar System!”

Well that was a lovely glance at the value of a keystone species and the value of that moment in busy human  life where we stop and consider the natural world. Thanks Kathleen for reminding us that beavers have a huge impact on their environment and are fun to watch! As a woman whose been seeing the Martinez Beavers four times a week for the past four years I have some additions/corrections I hope you won’d…