When I saw its face, I thought, “that might be a beaver?” But there was still a trace of doubt in my mind.
At Hayes Lake in Centralia on Sunday, frogs hopped off lily pads as ducks and kingfishers dove into the water. Muddy blankets and empty cans of chicken salad were also common sights. Between Hayes and Plummer’s lakes, the Skookumchuck River runs under Harrison Avenue in Centralia and Interstate 5.
It is not the most glamorous place in the Chehalis River Basin, but a very sly engineer has built a lodge on the bank without any permitting or property taxes — a beaver lodge.
On top of this sophisticated pile of sticks was a nutria feeding two babies.
Nutria are invasive rodents that live in drainage ditches, retention ponds, lakes, streams and rivers across Western Washington. According to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), nutria were sold throughout North America to fur farmers in the 1930s. Some bought the semi-aquatic rodents to control unwanted vegetation. Read previous Chronicle coverage about these creatures at https://bit.ly/chronline-nutriastory.
But, beyond the nutria mother, there was a menacing eye above the water, from another rodent that I described in a text message as “kind of scary” and the size of “a medium to large dog.”
Then — “smack!” A tail slaps the water and the creature dives down. It pops up again — “smack!” Another huge splash. It’s definitely a semi-aquatic rodent, but at least twice as big as the nutria mother.
At this point, I’m 80% sure it’s a beaver, but it took the help of eight different sources to confirm.
Finally, on Wednesday morning, I got a response from the Beaver Institute, a Massachusetts-based national nonprofit that promotes coexistence between people and beaver.
Adam Burnett, executive director of the institute, wrote it was “most definitely a beaver.”
WDFW Assistant Furbearer Biologist Shawn Behling was not as sure.
“Nutria and beaver are really tough to tell apart. One of the best ways to tell them apart is that nutria have a skinny, long, rat-like tail. Beavers always have a flat, paddle-like tail,” Behling said, later adding, “There’s a lot (of traits) that are similar about these critters. They definitely evolved for exactly the same niche, just on different continents.”
Behling was certain the nutria was a nutria, but was not certain the beaver was a beaver, especially without seeing it out of the water or next to something else for scale.
Burnett, from the Beaver Institute, said his determination came from “ear, nose, length and the shadow-play between its tail, the water and light.”
The creature also stumped Luc Lamarche, owner of a local business, Beaver Craftworks.
Beaver is a keystone species, meaning they play an integral role in a healthy watershed. Lamarche aims to create “beaver coexistence” by preventing flooding while letting the beaver stay in its chosen spot. He recently installed a “pond leveler” at Centralia College, which allowed a local beaver to stay in its chosen lodge.
Lemarche said the photos weren’t a smoking gun either way for him, but “the tail slapping is a beaver trait. They are operating in the same biome so it’s not uncommon to see them around each other.”
The tail slapping is the beaver posturing, Lemarche said, because they are very territorial.
For whatever reason, though, they’re alright with nutria.
“Beavers mate for life,” Behling said. “They’re very territorial with other beavers. But, they can hang out with other nutria. They don’t see those as much of a threat all the time. Every beaver is a little different. … They’re really big on collaboration.”
At Hayes Lake, the beaver is not flooding property or bringing down valuable trees. Elsewhere, they can be a challenge for landowners. New inventions and businesses, like Lemarche’s, look for ways people and beaver can live together in peace.
For others who happen upon a beaver, Behling said, “try to appreciate the beaver in the location where it is” and possibly use apps such as “Seek” by iNaturalist to identify the creature. The app is not always perfectly correct, but the data helps wildlife managers across the state keep stock of various flora and fauna.
And, bring a flashlight, Behling said. The best time to see beaver is right at dusk.
Learn more about coexistence with beaver at https://www.beaverinstitute.org.
