"We have to think of beavers as our friend instead of our foe; for these watersheds to be healthy, you need beaver.” Rancher Jay Wilde experienced a paradigm shift some years ago that convinced him beavers were necessary to hold more water higher in the watershed for longer and that this hydrologic change would benefit a cattle operation in numerous ways. He acted on this conviction with some expert help and it is a classic win-win scenario: cows have water, the larger riparian area grows more forage, fish populations increased dramatically, and beavers create the habitat that feeds them. Listen to Jay's story and check out the excellent video on this project at the link on the episode webpage, https://artofrange.com/episodes/aor-144-jay-wilde-idaho-rancher-builds-beaver-habitat-restore-stockwater.
