When European colonists arrived in North America, they discovered a land with as many as 400 million beavers. It’s reported that an estimated 250 million beaver ponds existed in North America’s waterways, turning free-flowing creeks into fertile wetlands.
In the early 1600s, fur trappers pillaged the continent’s streams and shipped millions of pelts to Europe to be turned into fashionable felt hats. It wasn’t until the 20th century that conservationists began to help beavers recover. As the beavers have now rebounded, it’s been discovered that beaver-constructed water features address multiple environmental problems from drought, pollution, biodiversity, and climate change. Here are some of the ways beavers help support the ecosystem. Filtering Pollution Beaver dams and pools reduce soil erosion and retain sediment, which absorbs and filters out pollutants like heavy metals, pesticides, and fertilizers. This improves the quality of water downstream that could be used by humans and other animal species. Preventing Floods While it is true that some beaver dams can sometimes contribute to flooding, they can also store water during periods of drought as well as slow down the movement of water from land to river systems, preventing more serious floods and potential financial damage to lands down streams. Adapting to Climate Change Beavers may help, to some extent, in terms of the climate mitigation side. This is because organic sediment settling in beaver ponds takes carbon with it and contains it. Also, beaver ponds promote increased vegetation, creating richer ecosystems that can store more carbon. Sustaining Salmon Salmon are vital to the Northwest’s ecosystems, including Native American cultures, and beavers are important to salmon. Beavers create deep, cool pools and slow water side channels where salmon can rest, feed, and find shelter from predators. Benefiting birds Beaver ponds provide habitats for multiple species, from boreal toads to otters, and even trout. However, some of the most important beneficiaries are birds. Wood ducks breed in beaver wetlands, swans’ nest on top beaver lodges, and flycatchers and other birds perch in willows irrigated by rising groundwater. Comments are closed.
|
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
August 2022
Categories |