BEAVERS MOVING IN ON LONGMIRE.
After an absence of at least twenty years the beavers came stealing
back under cover of darkness and again put up their claim stake on the
Longmire flat.
They chose a dense, small growth alder thicket just below Iron Mike
Mineral spring and have constructed three series of small dams.
My surprising discovery came as I was wading through the a thicket
and climbing over the matted young alder which was held down by the
weight of the snow. On coming to a rather deep pool of water I started
around, and there just a few feet ahead was a beaver house apparently
in first-class shape. From all appearances it had been erected only
recently and along the old established architectural lines for such
buildings. It was built of small, short branches well cemented with
alder leaves, mud and moss and stood about four feet from water level to
the topmost stick thus affording room for a modern and comfortable
beaver apartment.
The entrance to the house is about six feet to one side of its base
and under three feet of water. Their ingenuity and protective instinct
had caused them to fashion a retreat where they might escape a very
powerful enemy with comparative ease.
Beaver houses in this Park are famous because of their scarcity. The
only other one being discovered in the Fall of 1924 by the writer, a
quarter-mile above Tahoma creek and below the Nisqually road. Nature has
favored them by providing other means of shelter. However, this latest
house proves that this style of building is not a lost art and that
masters of the old school are still carrying on.
Just what pioneering spirit led this family to desert old established
stamping grounds can only be guessed at. Perhaps it was to enjoy the
medicinal or mineral properties of Iron Mike, but more likely it was the
age old desire to establish a home apart and alone. Instead of cutting
the material for their house close by they went far to one side of the
water and cut clumps of alder from one to three inches in diameter.
These saplings were then cut in lengths, one to three feet long, and
transported to the house or dam as desired.
It is hoped that they will stay and carry on their interesting work
so near our back doors.
Preston P. Macy,
Ass't. Chief Ranger.
