Beavers released into California river in effort to combat drought, restore native species

By Lindsay Weber

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    POPLAR, California (KCRA) — A family of seven beavers was released into a southern Sierra Nevada watershed earlier this month, in a move reminiscent of historical ways tribes conserved water.

On June 12, the Tule River Tribe, in partnership with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, released the beavers into the South Fork Tule River watershed on the Tule River Indian Reservation.

Beavers play a critical role in the ecology of the land, CDFW said in a news release. Their dams retain water and improve drought and wildfire resilience. CDFW wildlife biologists also expect the introduction of beavers to lead to better habitat conditions for a number of endangered species in the area.

The Tule River Tribe had been through a number of droughts over the years and members were looking for solutions.

“We were wondering how we can conserve, save water, get water here on our lands,” said Kenneth McDarment, a Tule River Tribe member and past tribal councilman. “The answer was in our pictographs.”

Estimated to be between 500 and 1,000 years old, beaver pictographs can be seen at Painted Rock next to the South Fork Tule River on the 55,356-acre reservation, CDFW said.

Ten years ago, tribal leaders embarked on a mission to bring beavers back to the watershed, CDFW said. And in 2022, CDFW received the state funding necessary to launch the Beaver Restoration Program.

In addition to the June 12 release, two additional beavers were released into Miner Creek on the Tule River Reservation on June 17. CDFW expects to reintroduce more of the mammal in the coming months and years.

CDFW’s Beaver Restoration Program is accepting proposals for more projects.

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