Dealing with Beavers

I went back and retold the story of how we came to build the culvert protection fence. I may have exaggerated a bit about the discussions and actions leading up to our decision to co-exist with our furry neighbors. Judge for yourself.

Beaver Tries to Dam Culvert

Last year, after working annually to unclog culverts dammed by beavers, we decided to try to solve the problem.  Thanks to advice from Mike Callahan and the folks on Facebook's Beaver Management Forum, we were able to build a culvert protection fence. That was one year ago. This video documents the results of that effort and the effort of the beavers.  Unable to reach the inflow side, their only option was to try to block the outflow.  Working against the flow proved difficult for them as the daytime flow, always washed some of their work away.

While our efforts were not 100% effective, it makes annual maintenance simple.  Unfortunately, we may have some bad news along with the good news.

Last year we had five beavers on the pond, representing three generations.  I suspect the parents told the oldest sibline to move on last season.  However, there have been no sightings of the mother or two youngsters born last year, and during the winter, I saw beaver tracks and fox tracks in the same vicinity. I fear the worst for the two youngsters and mom.  It's possible mom is still in the lodge with a new crop of kits, but only time will tell.

Got Pollen?

It wasn't until I saw this shot on the computer that I noticed the yellow pollen, body mustache on this old timer.

Sherwood Glen Pond Life - April 28, 2013

I was surprised by the amount of activity I encountered during a short 10-minute, noon-time walk around the pond.

The First Signs of Spring on the Pond

Most people look for a green sprout of some kind as the first signs of spring, but not me.  As I walked the pond trail yesterday, I realized spring was officially here when I checked out the culvert to see if the beavers have started their post-winter attempts to block the outflow.  

As you can see here, they have forced a few branches into the culvert, but most the grass and mud they piled on has washed away and water is flowing freely. Even if they eventually manage to slow the flow, the other two culverts are completely clear. With very little maintenance, I hope to have a clog free season.

I'm pleased to say that the culvert protection cage has survived the winter intact. A few of the nylon tie-downs that hold the cage to the fence post have broken, but they are simple to fix.

As you may know, beavers are a keystone species and their presence is responsible for the appearance of many other types of pond life, but some "animals" were around long before the beavers.  As I walked the perimeter and headed up to the leach field, I noticed a rock formation that I had seen many times before.  This time I viewed it with different eyes.  First it looked to me like a stone whale breaching the topsoil.  Upon further inspection l saw a stone hippo lifting his head out of the topsoil.

It is just my over active imagination, or do you see it too?

Our Newest Residents

A month or two ago, Don and Jessie told me that they spotted some otters on the pond.  Since then there have been a few other sightings.  Today, Jeanne C. sent me some pictures she snapped of one of them tooling around the edge of the pond skating on thin ice.

I just love the profusion of wildlife around the pond, but I have to admit otters are my favorite critters.

Here's one of the snapshots Jeanne sent.

I Missed a Lot of Dam Action!

After the beavers took down the large tree at the head of the trail, the began to pack it in for the season. I, unintentionally, followed suit. My family lives in NJ.  Hurricane Sandy and my parents' 70th anniversary had us occupied.  I haven't been down to the pond for weeks.

Last night, Russ woke me out of my dormancy with an email telling me he noticed the pond level was down almost a foot.  I took a walk to the culvert to investigate.  The drop off was immediately noticeable, but as I surveyed the dam, I saw no active leaks, not even the slow leaks that ran the entire season.  However, there two places that looked like breaches.

This picture taken at dusk, is what I thought was the smaller of the two apparent breaches. It is on the right as you walk down the trail from the condos toward the culvert.  At first glance, one wonders whether this is just a point where the beavers are crossing, but that's not the case.  There is no evidence of traffic in the gully or coning up the bank on the road side.

Closer inspection during the day revealed that it was a crossover, but it may have also been a small breach. After crossing over, they turned left and walked along the base of the dam to a protected grassy area closer to what I call the Sherwood Glen Turnpike (their chosen crossing). It lies between this crossover and the culvert. Had I taken a picture of it, you could more easily see the difference.  If I remember, I'll do that tomorrow and post it for comparison.

I just found a cool new application for my iPad. It's an interactive whiteboard app that allows you to record presentations. I just used it to give you a peek at the actual breach. Click here to see the breach near the culvert. It is even more obvious, because this is the most used human observation spot, and this only recently appeared.

My best guess is that the pond level rose, because of rain and runoff, and the flow over the top began slowly. The beavers had already settled in and whether by choice or because they didn't notice, they allowed the breaches to continue flowing.  Eventually, the level dropped sufficiently, and the water stopped flowing over the top. The perpetual leaks stopped either because they are now about water level, or the water pressure had dropped sufficiently to stop the leaks or make them imperceptible.

I'd love to hear from any Sherwood residents who might have seen actual water flowing and can confirm, refute, provide more details, offer a possible time frame, or otherwise clarify my musings.

UPDATE: Here's the Sherwood Glen Turnpike.  It's about 20 feet to the left of the breach as you look at the dam.