At the Beaver Pond

Beavers have been busy at the foreshore in Salmon Arm. Wire wrapped around the trees have not deterred them; instead, each section of wire has been carefully chewed around. This image was taken November 29, 2018 at the original beaver pond on the SABNES - Raven trail.

Here is how the tree looked December 17, 2018:

And by December 26, 2018, the felled tree had been carted off -- presumably by a beaver:

The work by beaver is not limited to just the beaver pond. This is at the boat basin:

So I have started doing a bit of reading about what other cities do about beavers. I found "Beaver Management Guidelines" in Oshawa and Red Deer which talk about the significance of beaver in the ecosystem -- but also talk about problems of blocked culverts and downstream flooding.

In some places beavers are trapped as part of a management process.

I doubt that the beaver activity on the SABNES trail will lead to flooding, or blocked culverts. I see a pond created by the damming of a creek which would normally be draining directly into the marsh area. The habitat provided gives more diversity than what would normally be there.

The main risk might be that partially chewed trees might fall over on the trail, or the railway tracks. While there is no doubt it is sad to see a large tree felled, most are willows and poplars which will regenerate from the stump.

This is from the November 2012 issue of the SABNES newsletter:

Beavers on the Foreshore
It’s more than a year since beavers have been lodged in the middle of the pond immediately west of the first boardwalk on the foreshore trail. At first they began to demolish the willows on the north side of the pond, and SABNES took action to protect some of the larger trees in that area. Now the beavers have become active on the south side of the pond and are attacking the trees which line the trail. The rate at which they can partially demolish a sizable tree is astonishing and these could become a hazard to pedestrians over a single night.

Salmon Arm councillors have agreed to let SABNES address this issue. SABNES does not want to interfere with the beavers, who are important members of wetlands ecosystems. Decapitated willows rapidly regenerate themselves. Nevertheless, SABNES will continue to protect the larger trees by surrounding their lower trunks with wire netting. Trees which become hazardous will be cut down and tossed into the area near the pond to provide the beavers with sustenance.

The beaver pond is one of my favorite places to visit on the nature trail. It is peaceful, and there is always a kingfisher, or flicker, or scores of blackbirds, to accompany my thoughts. Thank you to the beavers for creating it.