Engineers At Work

It's getting chillier each night now, and critters are doing their thing to survive the coming winter. Part of that process is sometimes annoying to humans, especially when they are left with either a miss of brush or their favorite young tree is neatly toppled. Beavers are building dams in order to keep reasonable water levels where they live, and restocking their ponds with tender branches to munch on during the winter. Unfortunately, they found the small grove of small trees between the Ricker and LaGue homes on Joe's Pond had just what they were looking for. Here's what Sue LaGue wrote to me earlier: 

 I wanted to tell you and pass on that the Rickers and LaGues have had a busy beaver chewing trees along our shoreline. It leaves the branches and leaves a mess. I could live with that but then it felled a poplar near our sheds. I've called Fish and Wildlife and talked with a Warden what we could do. Basically, it's all on us to try putting wire fencing around trees it might like, poplar, birch, beech. Otherwise, we could hire a trapper or try to get it ourselves. I wondered if others are having a problem. Beavers come out after dusk but with the low water it has found ways to climb my bank. If you see branches or sticks with eaten bark, it's what this beaver or beavers have left behind. I've already taken one load to the stump dump. I'm not sure what we will do but I hope it doesn't keep moving up the property to fell more trees.

Photos from Sue show the beavers' work. 

 Beavers have chosen that area before - there must be something special about the saplings along that little brook. It's difficult to know why they cut certain trees and not others, but I'm sure there is a reason. They are clever critters. Understandably, during droughts beavers become stressed. They are in danger of losing their habitat, so they are inclined to build more dams and cut more tender young trees to store for food to prepare for winter. There was a time when there were very few beavers left in Vermont - they were trapped in the very early settlement days because their pelts were valuable for men's hats - the fine stovepipe style worn by many gentlemen in Europe. Once the beavers were gone, former watersheds went dry and the natural ecology suffered. We now have them back, and it's a balancing act to protect our property such as prize trees or our land along a brook they decide to dam, while letting them do what comes naturally to them for their survival - and the survival of wetlands, in many instances. 

The best solution is probably to get out some wire and wrap the trees that are precious on your property - and maybe they will carry off some of the brush if it is left in place. If they don't, it will provide habitat for other wildlife this winter and you can assess the situation again in the spring. Sue - good luck!

Just a quick note on our weather - last night the temperature dropped to 34 degrees at my house, and I believer it is expected to go below that tonight. I have all my plants inside except some geraniums and straggly petunias that were in hanging pots. I've covered them, and if the forecast is correct, we may get warmer weather after this weekend. But it's time to think about buttoning up for winter!