Beavers Enjoy A West Coast Renaissance

Attention salmon and people who like water: Let's hear it for the beaver.Beavers were once routinely trapped and shot as varmints, their dams exploded and bulldozed. But The New York Times reports beavers are getting new respect across the West, thanks to the warmer, drier climate.

You see, beaver dams hold back water that would otherwise drain away.

Plus they raise the water table alongside a stream — that helps grow trees and plants that stabilize the banks and prevent erosion.

And the deep pools formed by the dams have cooler water at the bottom, which is a splendid habitat for juvenile coho salmon.

Government agencies are even putting on West Coast workshops and publishing a manual on how to attract Castor canadensis.

The next workshop will be in Everett on January 14.

Beavers Are Genius!