This hated animal came close to extinction, but now it provides a solution to drought and much more

Described, slaughtered for its fur and threatened, this animal is today an incredible asset against drought and for agriculture.

Although it appears today as essential to ecosystems, this animal has not always gotten along well with nature. #39;man, quite the contrary. The species even almost became extinct in the United States. forced to be victims of trapping and the lucrative fur trade that resulted from it. For decades, he was shot, poisoned and killed. and mothers have even been involved. dynamited. All this with one goal: to eradicate the species from its original territory and prevent it from touching the ;farmers' land.

This animal, once threatened disappeared and today qualified as of 'nature's firefighter', it's the beaver. this year, the beavers were listed as predators in Oregon, explains Jeff Baldwin, professor of geography at the University of Texas. university of Sonoma, California, who published é numerous studies on the subject. Clearly, in Oregon, "if an animal is a predator, you can kill it", he summarized&nbsp ;in the columns of the BBC. But everything has changed. A bill "believing in beaver" was é adopted in Oregon in 2023, changing the status of rodents: it is now prohibited to kill them without a permit. ;a very bad look by local farmers, initially.

Once numbering between 100 and 200 million, beavers have seen their global population plummet to almost 100 million. less than 100,000 in the 20th century. Extinction seemed inevitable. But &agrav; fighting force of NGOs, government agencies are starting to take action. take a new look, just like the public. "There there are a lot of misconceptions out there' about beavers, but it starts à change,” says Peggy Darr, who runs a program non-profit on the reintroduction of beavers to New Mexico. In public opinion, for example, the beaver attacks animals. any type of tree, completely false information. 

In reality, beavers are essential to ecosystems around the world. Their construction of dams makes it possible to irrigate parched landscapes, to regulate the flow of water, but also ;to keep fires under control. Beavers create deep ponds by building dams, but they also dig long, thin channels that gradually spread water across landscapes. The slow flow of water gives the ground time to absorb it, which promotes growth. supports both plant growth and wildlife, but also acts as a firebreak when the soil is wet. In addition, wetland beavers provide habitat for birds. other animals like otters, turtles or fish. In short, a formidable ally. for agriculture facing à drought.

Cohydrologist Emily Fairfax studies how water interacts with water. surrounding ecosystem. In particular, she examinedé aerial photos of Western states where major forest fires and droughts occurred. Amidst the chaos, green spots were visible. These were areas surrounded by beaver dams. Today, beavers are protected in France and in many European countries. The beaver population is estimated at 20 million people in the world.