Wildlife Nation Exclusive Clip: West Coast Conservation Join host Jeff Corwin on an epic adventure to the Sierra Nevada mountains of California to discover the effects of a devastating drought that’s plagued the Golden State for years. Jeff explores the
Join host Jeff Corwin on an epic adventure to the Sierra Nevada mountains of California to discover the effects of a devastating drought that’s plagued the Golden State for years. Jeff explores the aftermath of the massive Caldor Fire and meets the brave firefighters on the frontlines of climate change. Then, Jeff travels to Washington State to connect with two vital and threatened species: the resourceful American beaver and the endangered Pygmy rabbit. Jeff works alongside conservationists fighting to protect these amazing animals and the ecosystems where they live.
Video transcript:
Jeff Corwin:
Today's adventure begins in the great Pacific Northwest state of Washington. We're on a mission to save a species that transforms its habitat like few other creatures on earth, beavers.
Jeff Corwin:
Adult beavers use powerful jaws and sharp teeth to chew down hundreds of trees and build complex dams and lodges. As they build, they increase water storage, filter pollutants, and promote biodiversity. But beavers were hunted to near extinction beginning with the fur trades of the 1800s. Now, less than 3% of the original population remains.
Jeff Corwin:
This morning, I'm joining Molly Alves and Dylan Collins from the Tulalip Beaver Project. Our mission is to catch a family of beavers that are making an unwelcomed impact on the landscape of this private farm. We have a situation. Beavers are critical to this ecosystem, but sometimes beavers find themselves in a coexistence challenge. And that's what's happened today. And how are we going to fix that?
Molly Alves:
Yeah, so we are removing these beavers because the alternative is lethal management of these beavers. So we are going to trap the beaver family and relocate them up to Forest Service land.
Jeff Corwin:
Okay. Let's do it.
Jeff Corwin:
Molly uses a humane capturing system known as a suitcase trap. Beavers have an incredibly great sense of smell and they produce a secretion to mark their territory called castoreum.
Molly Alves:
So we are going to use a castor-based lure. Less is more.
Jeff Corwin:
When a beaver enters to investigate the smell, it will be safely trapped inside.
Molly Alves:
It's very important that we don't get any of this lure in the water because there may be another beaver family, half a mile downstream. And if we get it into the water column, it could attract beavers from different areas. And that is enough-
Jeff Corwin:
That's it.
Molly Alves:
To get their attention.
Jeff Corwin:
All right, our trap has been set.
Jeff Corwin:
Beavers are highly social animals with strong family bonds. In order for beavers to be successful in their new home, Molly and her team need to relocate the entire family. So we set several traps around the farm and before long we've got one.
Jeff Corwin:
So, we have a beaver.
Molly Alves:
That appears to be an adult.
Jeff Corwin:
And now we've got to move it. And how do we do that without getting nibbled?
Molly Alves:
Carefully.
Jeff Corwin:
Carefully. Okay, let's do it. Right now, it seems pretty calm, but that could change in a dime. There it be, our incredible beaver.
Jeff Corwin:
The Tulalip Tribal Community are leaders in wildlife management and their beaver relocation project is a huge success. This Tulalip fish hatchery will serve as a temporary home for the beaver while the rest of her family is captured. To make sure this beaver and we humans stay safe, we keep the beaver in the suitcase trap. This way, we don't have to use a sedative.
Jeff Corwin:
We've been successful in rescuing this beaver from a situation that may not have worked out, but this is only one step in this very important program that's really about a connection to salmon, isn't it?
Molly Alves:
Yes. So the reason we started this program at Tulalip is because salmon are an incredibly important subsistence resource for tribal members. And what beavers do in the areas that we're placing them is build dams that create awesome salmon-rearing habitat. So it's really all about salmon conservation and beavers are our partners in that restoration.
Jeff Corwin:
The next step is to collect important data from this beaver that the research partners at Washington State and the US Forest Service will use to better understand them.
Dylan Collins:
58 pounds.
Jeff Corwin:
58. So this is a good size beaver.
Molly Alves:
It is. All right, Jeff, if you would please grab a hair sample.
Jeff Corwin:
And, of course, what you can see is that there's different layers of hair because fur, if you live in cold water, it's critical, isn't it?
Molly Alves:
Absolutely. It keeps them insulated.
Jeff Corwin:
We coveted that warm pelt and it nearly drove them to extinction.
Molly Alves:
Yeah, exactly. Beavers were nearly extirpated from Washington State back in the late 1980s. And they're just starting to really make a big recovery.
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