Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter by Ben Goldfarb

Summary (Amazon): In Eager, environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb reveals that our modern idea of what a healthy landscape looks like and how it functions is wrong, distorted by the fur trade that once trapped out millions of beavers from North America’s lakes and rivers. The consequences of losing beavers were profound: streams eroded, wetlands dried up, and species from salmon to swans lost vital habitat. Today, a growing coalition of “Beaver Believers”—including scientists, ranchers, and passionate citizens—recognizes that ecosystems with beavers are far healthier, for humans and non-humans alike, than those without them. From the Nevada deserts to the Scottish highlands, Believers are now hard at work restoring these industrious rodents to their former haunts. Eager is a powerful story about one of the world’s most influential species, how North America was colonized, how our landscapes have changed over the centuries, and how beavers can help us fight drought, flooding, wildfire, extinction, and the ravages of climate change. Ultimately, it’s about how we can learn to coexist, harmoniously and even beneficially, with our fellow travelers on this planet.

Reviews:
Kirkus Review: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/ben-goldfarb/eager-goldfarb/

Christian Science Monitor: https://www.csmonitor.com/Books/Book-Reviews/2018/0801/Eager-is-a-passionate-captivating-love-letter-to-the-beaver

Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/how-beavers-can-save-the-world-from-environmental-ruin/2018/07/26/7d7f9caa-53c9-11e8-a551-5b648abe29ef_story.html

(NY Times) 

Videos:
Overview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhdfRWuqdSw

Author's Website: http://bengoldfarb.com/

Interesting Articles:
1. From 1974, New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1974/12/15/archives/lets-hear-it-for-the-eager-beaver-once-near-doom-in-new-york-this.html

2. Outside: https://www.outsideonline.com/2326991/ben-goldfarb-eager

Beaver Information and Sites:

1. Agate Fossil Beds National Monument in Nebraska: https://www.nps.gov/agfo/index.htm

2. Tulalip Tribes Natural Resources: Beaver: https://nr.tulaliptribes.com/Programs/Wildlife/Beaver

3. Worth a Dam: Heidi Perryman's site: https://www.martinezbeavers.org/wordpress/tag/heidi-perryman/ ("Because the beaver isn't just an animal, it's an ecosystem"

(https://www.fossilfreeway.net/agate.php)

Discussion Questions: (Donna will be leading the discussion and please find her questions below)

1.      Margaret Atwood states that “Canada was built on dead beavers.”  How does the fur trade affect U.S. history?  How did it affect Native Americans?  Talk about some of the players in this saga, from pilgrims, Lewis and Clark, Roosevelt, Hudson Bay Co. etc.

2.     The subtitle “surprising, secret life of beavers” suggests that we might learn some amazing new facts about the natural history of these rodents.  Is this the case?   How might you “subtitle” the book? 

3.     The beaver believers include a host of interesting, passionate characters from hydrogeologists, scientists, naturalists, ranchers, native Americans etc.  Discuss your favorite beaver story.

4.     Speaking of characters, Doug Smith is the leading authority on wolf restoration, and his PhD was on beaver behavior. In the chapter “Wolftopia”, the author states that scientists are trying to answer the question “Which keystone mammal did Yellowstone miss more, the apex predator or the hydraulic engineer?” Discuss the relationship between the wolves, elk, beaver, and streams.

5.     “Eager” should be required reading for ANYONE interested in wildlife and watershed management and restoration.  Let’s talk about the many, many benefits of the wetlands created by beavers.

6.     Beaver believers face the same problem many environmentalists face attempting to persuade disbelievers of facts regarding climate change, renewable energies, glyphosate and pesticide dangers, etc.  (asymmetric burden of proof).  How can we get better at combatting this problem?

7.     The sheer numbers of beavers slaughtered over the centuries up through modern times makes me think that if it weren’t for the beaver believers, they’d be gone for good.  Are you hopeful or woeful for their future?

8.     Mr. Goldfarb definitely has a sense of humor.  Did you enjoy his writing style?  Can you recall a favorite passage, incident, metaphor, or word that made you smile?

9.     What a perfect book this was for us to read after Sand County Almanac.  I suspect that Leopold would agree that the beaver is “an animal that doubles as an ecosystem”. What would a conversation between Goldfarb and Leopold sound like?  Refer to page 243:

“the best thing we can do for many landscapes is to turn their salvation over to a mammal whose ecological vision diverges wildly from our own.”

Palaeocastor

A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold

Summary: (From John Mertz)

The Sand County Almanac is widely considered to be a classic among conservation and natural history writings. It is a collection of essays published in the year after Aldo Leopold’s untimely death in 1948. The essays are grouped three sections:

(1)   A series of essays based on experiences Leopold acquired on his worn-out farm in Wisconsin’s sand counties. Leopold had purchased the farm in 1935 as a weekend retreat.

(2)   The second part, “Sketches from Here and There,” relates experiences Leopold had acquired elsewhere during his life, mostly earlier in his life and service as an agent of the U.S. Forestry Service.

(3)   The final set of essays is more philosophical. Here Leopold tackles the relationships between man and the environment. He discusses the importance of wilderness and of wildlife. He raises many of the issues conservationists face today, though in 1948 he could not have foreseen how badly that relationship has deteriorated.

I read this book at least once a year, mostly in the autumn when, if I am lucky and keep my ears cocked for their calls, I can see the flocks of geese flying overhead, traveling from their breeding grounds in the Canadian Arctic to their wintering grounds in the coastal marshes of Delaware, Maryland, and points south. To me, their passage marks the true end of summer and the beginning of Nature’s transition to winter.

Quotes:

"When we see the land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect."

Free edition of the book to read: http://www.umag.cl/facultades/williams/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Leopold-1949-ASandCountyAlmanac-complete.pdf

Author's Foundation Site: https://www.aldoleopold.org/about/aldo-leopold/sand-county-almanac/

Reviews:
Yes Magazine: https://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/power-of-one/book-review-a-sand-county-almanac-by-aldo-leopold
NY Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1999/11/13/opinion/a-sand-county-almanac-at-50.html

Silphium - 

"This is one little episode in the funeral of the native flora, which in turn is one episode in the funeral of the flora of the world."

Interviews and Articles:
1. With his daughter, Estella: https://www.humansandnature.org/revisiting-sand-county-an-interview-with-estella-leopold
2. NPR: Revisiting Leopold: https://www.npr.org/2013/03/10/173949498/remembering-aldo-leopold-visionary-conservationist-and-writer
3. With Curt Meine: https://longwoodgardens.org/blog/2014-03-03t000000/sand-county-almanac-interview-curt-meine
4. A Millennial Land Ethic: Or What would Leopold do Today? Huff Post, DEc. 6, 2017, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/a-millennial-land-ethic-o_b_10402060

Films:
1. A Prophet for all Seasons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_29ZlKyJJPo
2. Green Fire: https://www.aldoleopold.org/store/green-fire-dvd/
3. Learning from the Land: https://video.wpt.org/video/wpt-documentaries-aldo-leopold-learning-land/

(news.wisc.edu)

Discussion Questions created by John Mertz - Unfortunately, he can not join us for the discussion.

(1)   Leopold was, by profession, a scientist, one who asks questions of Nature in order to learn more about how Nature is structured and how it works. Where in these writings does Leopold exhibit that training?

(2)   Leopold was also a consummate teller of stories, one who could tell a tale in a way that would really hold your interest. Where does he show that to best effect?

(3)   Leopold could also be described as a philosopher, one who thinks deeply about the human condition and of the relationships between man and his/her surroundings. Where does he display this side of him most clearly? Is he still entertaining? Are his philosophical musings still relevant? Did he go far enough in his discussions of the man/environment dynamic? Given his time, could he have gone further?

(4)   Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why should he/she read it?

(5)   Leopold is often described as the “Father of Wildlife Management,” a distinct practical science. What did Leopold see as the purpose (or purposes) of Wildlife Management? Did he go far enough in his viewpoint to make this practical science truly sustainable? Do you agree with his assertion that the value of wilderness experiences diminishes in proportion to the gadgetry we employ in our pursuit of them? How has our employment of “gadgets” impacted on the sustainability of wild resources? Why is it that our pursuit of wild resources always seems to lead to their extinction?

(hcn.org)