Watch: Beavers provide key ecosystem services

As ecosystem engineers, beavers can provide some surprising services, from preserving wetlands to creating habitat for fish and other wildlife to creating natural firebreaks.

“Whoever you are, whatever it is you care about, beavers are providing some important service,” environmental scientist Ben Goldfarb told the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Goldfarb the author of Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet and Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter. He spoke with CDFW Director Chuck Bonham about the importance of beavers (Castor canadensis) on the landscape.

“Here’s this animal that we brought back from the brink that we’re learning to live with,” Goldfarb said. “To me, that’s a really hopeful story for the future of all wildlife recovery.”

For more about the roles beavers play on the landscape, check out the May/June issue of The Wildlife Professional.

Watch the interview with Ben Goldfarb below.