Maggie's Farm

We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.

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Thursday, January 10. 2008

Everyone is asking...What is the world's largest beaver dam?

Where is the world's largest Beaver dam?

We have heard the stories that the largest is somewhere in Three Forks, MT, but the best data I can find is that the largest is in Wood Buffalo Park in northern Alberta.

It is 2790 feet, or about a half mile in length. It makes sense that the longest dams would need to be built on gently-sloping, slow-moving wetlands in order to impound a good volume of water, while most Beaver-sized streams can be effectively dammed with shorter lengths, or a series of shorter lengths, as in the photo below (from this excellent Beaver photo site):

 

Posted by Bird Dog in Natural History and Conservation, Our Essays at 12:51 | Comments (10) | Trackbacks (0)

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Where have all the beavers gone, dammit.

They are still dammin in Colorado but that Albert must be the biggest beaver lodge, I've seen.

But it isn't extant, is it?

Some beaver is better'n none.
#1 Leag on 2008-01-10 15:11 (Reply)
If you keep talking about beaver photos you are going to get banned by Google like Theo did...

We have a ranch on the Boxelder creek in Wyoming, SE of Casper near the Medicine Bow NF. We have tons of active beavers damming away on the creek.
#2 coyote (Link) on 2008-01-10 15:49 (Reply)
No shortage of beaver in the US these days, but 60 years ago there were hardly any left in the Northeast - all trapped out.
#2.1 BD on 2008-01-10 15:58 (Reply)
Re; Topic for discussion: How did the forest birds and squirrels feel?

Feel what?
#2.2 Leag on 2008-01-10 16:09 (Reply)
Talking about active beavers. Have a look at Pakwaw Lake Beaver Community, Canada's beaver capital!

http://www.geostrategis.com/p_beavers-pasquia2.htm

or at Google Earth BBS:
http://bbs.keyhole.com/ubb/showthreaded.php/Cat/0/Number/1005658/page/1/vc/1
#2.3 Jean Thie (Link) on 2008-02-04 08:21 (Reply)
I liked this line from the article:

"So I think a dam is more a line of continuity than it is an interruption of a fundemental force of nature. A beaver dam is that arc of a circle that enables a beaver pond to be the home of a colony of beavers."

That "arc of a circle" has a nice touch to it. His pages on mink and otter were also interesting.

There's something intriguing, engaging and real about a nature site put together by some regular guy, rather than a squad of professionals. The Nat'l Geographic article would have some full-color picture of a beaver standing tall atop his dam, looking majestically over his realm with a glorious dying sunset in the background, and my first thought would be, "Okay, who photoshopped this sucker?"

The word "photoshop" never entered my mind while reading this guy's article.

Made for a nice change, BD. That's what Maggie's is all about.
#3 Dr. Mercury (Link) on 2008-01-11 08:22 (Reply)
Tanks!
#3.1 BD on 2008-01-11 17:54 (Reply)
Found the dam on Google earth. It's at:
58 Deg 16'10" N
112 Deg 13'50" W
#4 Gwynnie on 2008-01-11 12:19 (Reply)
Oh! It was beaver" DAM!"

I wuz gonna say, "Britney Spears." :(
#5 rufus on 2008-01-12 19:58 (Reply)
gunnason colorado has a 5 or 6ft beaver. hes huge i might go get a tag to go take him.
#6 Randy on 2009-10-25 19:29 (Reply)

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