Volunteers Check On Watershed During Beaver Count

Volunteers concerned with the environment are trying to figure out the health of the watershed, by seeing if they can count local colonies of beaver.

Mike Settell organized the event the 2012 Beaver Count, he said there is a strong link between the beaver population and the health of the entire local environment.

“Beaver are really good reflections of what’s going on in the environment right now. In fact they are referred to as a keystone species,? Settell said.

But Settell said it’s been over 20 years since anyone has done a count, and it’s hard to say what’s happened to the beaver population since then.

“The truth of the matter though, is we just don’t know. And so we’re taking this opportunity to get people out and informed about the watershed,? Settell said.

During the beaver count, the volunteers didn’t actually see many beaver, but kept eyes out for dams and gnawed on stumps.

Some volunteers brought along the whole family.

“We try to instill in our kids an appreciation for wildlife and they love animals and this is an opportunity for them to start practicing science at a young age,? Cara Sonnemann said.