For years, officers in the Czech Republic have pushed the dam project to protect the river south from Prague and critically endangered species living in it. But the project, which extinguished the land negotiations, stopped.
Meanwhile, a group of mammals with chisels-known by their engineering skills and work ethics, and unburdened by bureaucracy-she has adopted to take the task. The Beavers in Prague simply built dams themselves.
Fast operation of rodents saved local authorities around EUR 1.2 million, according to a news From the Czech Nature Agency, the Government agency responsible for preserving throughout the country. “Nature has started,” said Bohumil Fischer, head of the area of the protected landscape of BRDY, where the revitalization project was planned, in a statement. Beavers, he added, created the ideal environmental conditions of “practically overnight.”
Project, on the place of the former army On Klabava, Rijeka, about 40 miles southwest of Prague, Czech capital, was made in 2018 and had a construction permit, but for years she was postponed to negotiations around the country, which were used as military training, Reported the France-Press agency Tuesday. Officials hoped to build an obstacle to the protection of Rijeka and its population critically endangered crabs from sediments and acidic water spilled from two nearby ponds, AFP reported.
Beavers started working before the excavators could even break the ground. It was not immediately clear when the dams were built and how long it took them to build them.
The new swampy area that created the dams covers almost five hectares, the preservation group said. It is twice the area that people planned, Agence-Presses reported. “It’s a full service,” said Mr. Fischer AFP, “Beavers are absolutely fantastic and when they are in an area where they cannot do damage, they do a great job.”
Despite theirs extraordinary ability For the construction of the dam, the beavers are often attracted to the anger of land and farmers for the destruction of trees, eating crops and flooding of the road and field. However, when thinning the canopies of trees, rodents can often help in diversifying ecosystems by allowing sunlight to succeed in other plant species, said Emily Fairfax, Assistant Professor of Ecology at the University of Minnesota.
“They basically change the way water and life move through that landscape,” she said.
To build a dam, Beavers, whose weight as adults can go from about 40 to 80 pounds, start accumulation of small stones Over the river or stream, packing these stones with mud and repeating the procedure for the construction of the pond, which then expand and become a swamp area, said Dr. Fairfax.
They are motivated by their fear of predators: Beavers are skilled swimmers and can hold your breath under water for 15 minutes. On the mainland, their tireless cotton wool makes them light prey. “They are basically large chicken shades for predators,” which include bears, mountain lions and wolves, she said.
The Czech dam is not the first time that rodents have helped the construction of wetlands. Dabrovi in California have helped renovate I swim about 30 miles northeast of Sacramento. In that case, the Beavers work also helped local officials save money. “All they had to do was let the Beavers be there,” said Dr. Fairfax. In other cases, the Dabrovi often worked that were unmistakable. “We somehow have a blind to beavers,” she said, noting that they were often considered a nuisance because of their alarming size and ability to change the landscape quickly.
“They are strong, they are big and elusive,” said Dr. Fairfax, noting that despite the Beavers’ engineering skill, they were a challenge to preserve groups when planning for reconstruction projects.
“We often do not want to allow Beavers to make decisions, because it is difficult to plan that uncertainty; it is difficult to transfer control with a giant water rodent,” she said. “But then the Beavers are best.”
