Goldfarb - Eager: the surprising, secret life of beavers and why they matter

PRAISE FOR EAGER

Eager is a revelation! If we only let them live, beavers are the solution to many of our nations ecological problems. Ben Goldfarbs wonderful book will make you an even bigger fan of these intelligent, inventive, resilient rodents than (if you have any sense) you are alreadyand might just tail-slap a politician or two into realizing how much we need them to restore our critical wetlands.

Sy Montgomery , author of The Soul of an Octopus and coauthor of Tamed and Untamed

Beavers are easy to caricature, and theyre a bit comical. But theyve got their serious side, too. European settlers who cut, plowed, and shot their way west also trapped the country nearly clean of mammals. Almost killing off beaversthe continents major water engineers and dam builderscaused widespread problems for wildlife and people. Now, though, beavers are on the rebound, and the how and who of that story, as told in Eager , will give you a new and completely different concept of the continent.

Carl Safina , author of The View From Lazy Point and Beyond Words

This witty, engrossing book will be a classic from the day it is published. No one who loves the landscape of America will ever look at it quite the same way after understanding just how profoundly it has been shaped by the beaver. And even the most pessimistic among us will feel strong hope at the prospect that so much damage can be so easily repaired if we learn to live with this most remarkable of creatures.

Bill McKibben , author of The End of Nature

Eager is the stunning story of beaversso integral to early human landscapes of North Americaand their function in support of people and later the American economy. Literally natures Corps of Engineers, beavers today play vital roles in restoring watersheds, landscapes, and flood control throughout the continent. To view them just as a cute animal with a flat tail is to trivialize a central player in both history and modern day landscape ecology.

Thomas E. Lovejoy , University Professor of Environmental Science and Policy, George Mason University

Eager brilliantly presents the role of the American beaver in shaping the landscape of our continent and preserving its ecological integrity and diversityand does so in clear, readable prose. My Native ancestorsbefore the cultural disruptions of the fur tradesaw the beaver people as a nation worthy of the greatest respect. I believe that any thoughtful person who reads this book will come away with a much deeper appreciation of this sacred beings place in the America of the past and, we hope, the future.

Joseph Bruchac , coauthor of Keepers of the Earth

Long trapped for their fur and maligned as pests, beavers are finally recognized for their role in keeping water in the landscape. Goldfarbs spirited, well-researched account tells the story of humanitys relationship with beavers and highlights innovative efforts to ally with them to restore rivers and wetlands and boost ecological resilience. Our winsome, paddle-tailed friends could have no better champion.

Judith D. Schwartz , author of Cows Save the Planet and Water in Plain Sight

There are a number of books that focus on a single species, but the amazing story of the beaver, as told by Ben Goldfarb, is in a class all its own. Dear reader, prepare yourself to be awed by a rodent!

Tom Wessels , author of Reading the Forested Landscape and Granite, Fire, and Fog

One of the best things that can be said about a book is that it is both necessary and good. Not many are, but this one is.

Richard Manning , coauthor of Go Wild

With the perfect blend of science and storytelling, Ben Goldfarb takes us on a remarkable journey to discover the myriad ways beavers have shaped our landscapes and historyand, if we are willing, could help us fix our broken water cycle. An absorbing and eye-opening book that comes at a crucial time.

Sandra Postel , author of Replenish

In Eager Ben Goldfarb demonstrates that beavers are more than just a fascinating and mysterious rodenttheyre also an animal that doubles as an ecosystem. Optimistic and exciting, the book suggests a future where rather than destroying nature, or trying to dominate it with heavy-handed management, we collaborate with species like beavers to create a wilder, more diverse, and surprising world. Eager will make a Beaver Believer out of you!

Emma Marris , fellow at the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability; author of The Rambunctious Garden

Beavers do matter. Contrary to the popular image of beavers as trouble-making varmints on the land, these hardworking animals play many critical roles in nature, including rewetting creeks in dry country. That might seem counterintuitivebeavers are famous dam builders after allbut as Ben Goldfarb explains in his riveting new book, the engineering prowess of these mighty rodents is essential to healthy riparian areas. And they do their work for free!

Courtney White , author of Grass, Soil, Hope and Two Percent Solutions for the Planet

An important and engaging book about the nature of beavers, the forces of nature, and the hubris of humans. While Ive read many books about how Homo sapiens extirpated species around the globe historically, and how weve wiped out birds such as turkeys and beasts such as bison and elk in the recent past, I had not read a book about beavers. This book is an eye-opening contribution with great examples of the power of beavers to restore ecosystems.

Fred Provenza , author of Nourishment

In this beautifully written tribute to beavers, Ben Goldfarb paints a vivid and captivating portrait of two of natures most fascinating species, Castor canadensis and Castor fiber . Seamlessly combining history, ecology, biology, politics, and compelling stories of those battling over the proper role of beavers in todays anthropocentric world, Eager resoundingly proves that these magnificent rodents do indeed matter a great deal. In so doing, this gem of a book offers hope not only for the beavers future, but also our own.

Eric Jay Dolin , author of Fur, Fortune, and Empire and Black Flags, Blue Waters

Eager

THE SURPRISING, SECRET LIFE OF

BEAVERS

AND WHY THEY

MATTER

Ben Goldfarb

FOREWORD BY DAN FLORES

CHELSEA GREEN PUBLISHING

WHITE RIVER JUNCTION, VERMONT

LONDON, UK

Copyright 2018 by Ben Goldfarb.

All rights reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all photographs by Ben Goldfarb.

Illustrations on copyright 2018 by Sarah Gilman.

No part of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form by any means without permission in writing from the publisher.

Grateful acknowledgement is given to High Country News , which originally published The Beaver Whisperer and portions of Wolftopia, and to bioGraphic , which published portions of Dislodged.

Project Manager: Sarah Kovach

Developmental Editor: Michael Metivier

Copy Editor: Laura Jorstad

Proofreader: Rachel Shields Ebersole

Indexer: Ruth Satterlee

Designer: Melissa Jacobson

Printed in the United States of America.

First printing June, 2018.

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Our Commitment to Green Publishing

Chelsea Green sees publishing as a tool for cultural change and ecological stewardship. We strive to align our book manufacturing practices with our editorial mission and to reduce the impact of our business enterprise in the environment. We print our books and catalogs on chlorine-free recycled paper, using vegetable-based inks whenever possible. This book may cost slightly more because it was printed on paper that contains recycled fiber, and we hope youll agree that its worth it. Chelsea Green is a member of the Green Press Initiative (www.greenpressinitiative.org), a nonprofit coalition of publishers, manufacturers, and authors working to protect the worlds endangered forests and conserve natural resources. Eager was printed on paper supplied by Thompson-Shore that contains 100% postconsumer recycled fiber.