Benefits

What are the benefits of beavers?

Beaver dams create wetland areas that retain rain and snowmelt for use later in the summer.

Reintroducing beavers along stream systems will create more wetland areas that retain rain and snowmelt for use later in the summer. Beaver dams trap sediment making streams cleaner, restore eroded stream banks, cause ground water levels rise, and create habitat for fish and wildlife.

Beaver dams create deep cold pools for fish. In warmer weather, trout seek out cool spring fed pools. The wetlands and meadows that are formed by beaver dams improve water quality in downstream by trapping sediment and reducing erosion along banks.

Wetland Benefits

Freshwater wetlands are decreasing worldwide, yet many scientists consider them the world's most valuable ecosystems because of the wealth of beneficial services they provide. Programs such as the U.S. Wetland Reserve Program recognize this by reimbursing landowners who protect wetlands. In addition, conservation easements, water banking and other tools are in the works to compensate land owners who participate.

To read more about the benefits of beavers, click here for documents or here for weblinks. 

Photos from top to bottom: (1)beaver dam (2)wetland