Our Lives, our Politics, our Development, Mirrors that of a Beaver Habitat

This week our DEEP Master Wildlife training class hiked to visit the beaver dam habitat that resides on the Session Woods property.  As I observed the area, and listened to the speaker, I realized how closely beavers mirrored our own lives.

When beavers choose an area to reside, they modify the landscapes ecology, its area population, its social structure, even its diversity of other wildlife/habitants.

Sound familiar? In many way humans operate in the same manner.

When beavers move in, they cut down trees, dam a slow moving stream in a forest, and flood the area.  While this may all sound bad, it can actually create a very dynamic habitat, to support a more diverse ecology. Flooded woodland, trees and shrubs are attractive to waterfowl for nesting and food supply. As some of the older trees die they provide nesting for blue Herons, and ‘excavation’ sites and insects for woodpeckers.

The opening in the forest from the beavers clearing, provides sunlight that allows aquatic vegetation to grow. For the first few years, you will see improvement in the environment. Eventually the impact will change the ecology to resemble more of a pond, with fewer trees standing, and aquatic plants becoming more dominant. When the beavers leave the area, the dam will break, and the area will eventually turn into meadow. 

The landscape has evolved and changed, but now supports a different type of wildlife. Fifty years could pass, before the area returns to forest again.

As we consider our own town conservation and development plans, we need to contemplate the long-term effects of our actions. We need to ensure that our actions do not have severe negative impact on the landscape and wildlife. We need to find sustainable solutions to protect the beauty and natural function of our greenways.

Does this mean we need to fight to protect every ‘patch’ of grass or trees? No. Sometimes it is actually good to clear-cut parts of a forest to create a more diverse habitat. What it does means, is we need to have a master plan that looks at protecting key/critical greenways, use sound development practices, that are sustainable. We need to find balance.

There are times where beaver flooding can cause negative impact for our communities, such as when it floods roads, our houses, or fields.

As our class was leaving the Beaver site, we passed some pipes sticking out of the ground. Curious, someone asked what they were. They were samples of ‘Beaver Deceivers’. Beavers instinctively react to the sound of moving water which prompts them to block the hole where water is flowing. To ‘fool' the beavers in areas that negatively impact our environment, we can place underground pipes below their dam, so they cannot hear the water flow.

That is the part that mirrors our politics.

I will not expand on that point, as it will likely get me into trouble.