Enthusiasm for beavers and their role as ecopartners is growing! Why? They are nature’s original engineers, deftly creating new riparian habitat and healthy streams. But sometimes beavers need a little … Read more
Sarah Bates’s Archive
Good PR for Beavers
Beavers have a rich and interesting history in America. Trapped to near extinction in the 1800s, beavers are returning to their old haunts, and with them come benefits that more … Read more
Beavers, Water, and Fire—A New Formula for Success
In the arid western U.S., water is life. Wet areas—like streamsides, ponds, and meadows—comprise less than 2% of the landscape but are vitally important for wildlife. Unfortunately, nearly half of … Read more
Swimming with Salmon, Splashing with Beavers
Preparing for our beaver pond vigil, Professor Phil Brick expressed some doubt that a group of nearly two dozen lively and excited college students would be able to sit silently … Read more
Buffalo Unites Us
The American bison or buffalo is essential to the traditions, culture, beliefs and religious practices of Native American tribes across the western United States and Canada. Many Americans are familiar … Read more
More Beavers Equals More Birds
We know that beavers are busy critters. They build habitat for fish and wildlife when they create natural structures in streams and rivers that slow down and spread out water. … Read more
Western Rivers at Risk
Water–or the lack of it–defines the American West. One commonly used marker that you’ve crossed into the western part of the country is the 100th Meridian, which bisects the Great … Read more
The Best Dam Water Engineers
Beavers may be our most important partner in protecting and restoring western streams and watersheds. By building temporary dams on small streams, beavers slow down rainwater runoff and snowmelt. This … Read more
Protecting Water for Wildlife
In the late summer, western rivers get “skinny”–depleted by longstanding diversions for irrigation and municipal demands, and exacerbated by changes in mountain snowpack and warmer temperatures due to climate change. … Read more
Growing WILD
Five years ago, a team of community volunteers broke ground on a new native plant garden at a wildlife education center in Helena, Montana. The former Stedman Foundry site required … Read more
