Some Dam Good Songs: An Ode to Beavers Role in Recovering from Climate Change, by Jocelyn Gale

wmsr60
Apr 17
5 min read

As the world warms up, beavers are taking the pressures of climate change into their little paws and offering a helping hand to us humans. Albeit unintentionally, but helping nonetheless! And as an ode to these wetland dwelling creatures, I have curated a few songs that feel beaver-ish in nature to go along with my informational narrative about these cool guys.

“You Are Invited” by Dismemberment Plan

“You are invited / By anyone to do anything”

When beavers inhabit an area, step number one is to dam that shit up. And let me tell you, they are inviting all of the other animals in there to enjoy the beauty of a safe and water-driven environment. So what better way to commend this lovely intertwining of species than with the sincere warmth of track seven from the killer album, Emergency & I, by the Dismemberment Plan.

Beavers are a keystone species, which is described as “one of the most vital parts” of an ecosystem, by National Geographic. Essentially, this means that without this species an ecosystem could be unable to survive. The beaver and the dams they build are a critical part of North American wildlife. They build the dams in order to create a safe haven for themselves and other creatures. This dam continues to be expanded upon as the beavers create small ravines and sporadic pathways for easier transportation in their communities. As they spread the water throughout the environment, they transform the land into a wetland. Beavers in particular are not exactly well versed on land…they are somewhat awkward and especially susceptible to predators, but by building a dam, they give themselves a body of water to keep them safe from those who might want to eat them. Water pools to create a deep pond where other mammals can feel protected and fish can enjoy the depths of cool water in the warmer seasons.

“Here’s Your Future” by The Thermals

“So bend your knees and bow your heads / Save your babies, here's your future”

The Earth's temperature is rising, and the United States Government is actually taking action to see to it that they are incredibly unhelpful in the efforts to recover from the sheer abundance of greenhouse gases that are suffocating our planet. This song from The Thermals album, The Body, The Blood, The Machine, is angry at the world and angry for the future–I’m sure anyone who bothers to care about climate change would relate to its sentiments.

Now, before delving into where the humble beaver stands in this conversation–I must briefly elaborate on the current state of global warming. According to climate scientists at Yale, 2026 is predicted to be one of the hottest years Earth has ever seen. While many countries have made efforts to reduce carbon emissions, the President of the United States refers to global warming as a “hoax” and has taken legislative action to directly combat efforts to reduce climate change. With the United States having one of the highest carbon footprints in the world, one would hope that someone in the government higher-ups would give a damn (see the wordplay here?) but it seems they just continue to disappoint humanity with each passing year.

How does this apply to beavers? I’m glad you asked! Beavers are responsible for the reduction of carbon in the atmosphere and the cooling of air temperatures in their wetland habitats. So I like to look to these fuzzy pawed creatures as a beacon of hope for the future in this trying time for our planet.

“Dog Eat Dog” by Adam & The Ants

“You may not like the things we do / Only idiots ignore the truth”

For many years beavers were considered mere pests. Tsk! In the early 20th century, North American Beavers almost went extinct! They were trapped and hunted until they were nearly killed off completely. Oregon even had beavers classified as a “predator” species until 2024…despite the fact that they are strict herbivores. This was mostly because of their behaviors, which caused most to see them as a nuisance species. And, yes, they were known to cause floods…block irrigation…and even damage property…but come on people! It’s for the greater good! Beavers are imperative to the survival of many ecosystems, and have now been discovered to be creating their own carbon dioxide “sinks” (Fairfax, LiveScience) which suck the carbon emissions from the air! So, I guess the selected lyrics from this song imply how I suspect beavers might feel about those who think of them as pests.

“Work Hard” by Depeche Mode

“You got to work hard, you got to work hard / If you want anything at all”

Well, these little engineers just put their heads down and work! They hack away at trees with their big teeth and get right to business as soon as they inhabit an area.

The dams they build create pools of water and expand into wetlands, like I mentioned previously, but why this deems them “carbon sinks” is because they are actually slowing the water movement down in the area–allowing for carbon to be absorbed. A study done in Europe measured the amount of carbon in the sediments, atmosphere, water, and other biological features of the beaver wetlands in the area–discovering that they stored “108 to 146 tons (98 to 133 metric tons) of carbon per year” and estimated that of the land suitable for beaver wetlands in Switzerland, this “could offset between 1.2% and 1.8% of Switzerland's annual carbon emissions.” (LiveScience) There are similar results occurring with North American beavers in research led by beaver scientist Emily Fairfax, who writes that the “flood plain-connected rivers increase carbon storage” in a study regarding the beaver wetlands in America.

In addition to this positive impact on carbon emissions, beaver wetlands also store freshwater and help to restore groundwater supply in drought-stricken areas. Particularly in the North American West, the persistence of climate change has dried out water sources and led to increased risk of wildfires. New studies done in collaboration with Fairfax have shown that beaver wetlands are correlated with healthier and sustained plant life and cooler air temperatures due to the water storage dispersal. Not only this–but it has also been found that these beaver wetlands are more resistant to wildfires, and can retain water to supply the plant and animal life in the area, resisting the dryness and roaring fires that have become of higher risk in recent years.

“New Slang” by The Shins

“And if you took to me like a / Gull takes to the wind / Well, I'd've jumped from my trees / And I'd've danced like the king of the eyesores”

Now, you may be wondering, where do we go from here? According to Fairfax, there’s no time to wait on taking action, meaning “we should implement, and continue to study, process-based methods in degraded streams across the continent…start rewriting our beaver management policies today to actively support coexistence…proactively educate wildlife managers, land managers, and the public about the incredible value that these ecosystem engineers bring to our communities.” There are still many questions to be answered about how to most effectively enact change with this newfound information, but the world isn’t getting any cooler–so something must start now!

And while humans figure out the logistics, I picture the humble beaver, munching on bark and gliding through their hard earned lakes to a peaceful song like this one.

“Movin’ on Up” by Primal Scream

“I was blind, now I can see/You made a believer out of me”

Perhaps it’s presumptuous of me, but I’d like to think that after reading this there might be a few other beaver enthusiasts rallying behind me.

No, Beavers will not single-paw-edly solve climate change–but they absolutely make an impact that deserves some praise and solidifies their importance to the planet and makes a point to the many humans who have treated them as pests throughout the years.