In 1948, Idaho Fish and Game began parachuting “nuisance” beavers into the backcountry in spring-loaded boxes that opened upon landing. The “nuisance” began in the wake of WWII as prosperity returned to the nation and more reliable automobiles allowed people to discover places like McCall, Idaho. People started building homes near beaver complexes. Suddenly, the beavers became a problem.
Elmo Heter worked for the Fish and Game Department in McCall, and he came up with the idea of parachuting the industrious animals into the wild. Heter believed that the Chamberlain Basin, in what is now the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness Area, would be the perfect location. The beavers would be away from people, and their natural activity would benefit the landscape. But with no roads into the basin, delivering 76 beavers to their new home would be challenging. The combination of WWII paratroopers, a ready supply of airplanes, and cheap fuel supported beaver airdrops. The parachuting beavers thrived in the wilderness, and so did the local ecosystem.
Beavers are a keystone species that once shaped ecosystems across North America. Their elimination from the landscape had altered ecosystems, leaving them drier and more susceptible to wildfire. In the decades following the release of Idaho’s skydiving beavers, the benefits of beaver activity caught the attention of NASA analysts, whose satellite imagery revealed lush landscapes in areas where the beavers had landed. As it turns out, the beavers created and are sustaining ecosystems that represent a front-line defense against wildfire and drought.
A recent study conducted by Forest Service researcher Sebastian Busby and Portland State University professor Andrés Holz demonstrates the importance of fire refugia for forest regeneration. “After the fires,” Holz said, “these green islands that we term refugia may be the last bit of hope we have for the forests to recover naturally.”
In the aftermath of wildfire, beaver complexes are green islands in a charred landscape. The beavers’ handiwork also protects water resources by reducing sedimentation and ensuring cleaner water for downstream communities.
