The Parachuting Beavers
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF IDAHO FISH AND GAME
Moving the nuisance
Idaho’s Fish and Wildlife team realized they were facing a major issue with the ever-growing population in Southwest Idaho. New residents were making daily complaints about their buck-tooth neighbors. The beavers were knocking down trees into near by buildings, forming dams that would flood backyards. The land was also being used to create orchards for agricultural purposes. Fish and Wildlife knew that either decision of relocating or keeping the beavers, would result in a negative impact on the ecosystem. Beavers establish and maintain wetlands, improve water quality, reduce erosion, and create habitat for game, fish, waterfowl, and plants. They also help stabilize the water supply for humans and animals alike. Fish and Wildlife came to the conclusion that relocating the beavers would be most beneficial for the ecosystem. Idaho had been relocating beavers since 1930. The relocation process was dangerous and at times lethal to the beaver. First, a trapper would need to capture the beavers by setting traps near their dams and small game trails. Next, they would bring the beavers to a conservation officer to asses they overall health of the beavers. After an overnight stay, Fish and Wildlife would transport the beavers in crates in the back of a truck. Depending on the season, the beavers were at high risk of death from heat exhaustion. At the final stage of the relocation process, the boxes in which the beavers were placed into, were strapped to the backs of horses and or mules to hike them into a new ecosystem.
The challenge of parachuting beavers from a plane was the design of the box. Elmo Heter, the man behind the plan, began on a design of a box that would contain two beavers at one time. They used a wood called “woven willow” because they believed the beavers could chew their way out. During the first test, the beaver chewed threw the wood in mid air… After finding a stronger wood, Heter selected an older beaver named Geronimo to put his new box to the test. The box consisted of multiple holes to allow in air, and the moment it landed the hinges would pop the box open. They ran multiple test drops with Geronimo to find the ideal height to drop from (500-800ft). Heter’s knew that parachuting the beavers would have a higher rate of survival versus carrying them on horseback.
On August 14, 1948, eight crates of beavers were stuffed into a Beechcraft plane. 76 beavers were about to land in their new home. Everything was going smooth, till one hatch opened early about 70 feet above the ground. The beaver made the jump to freedom, only to meet its fate. This was the only death out of the 76 beavers sent that day. Heter searched for Geronimo a f ew days after the drop, he found him happily with three younger female beavers. The projected total was $7 per beaver, coming out to a total of $532 and some change. The parachutes were recovered by backpackers and forest rangers. With today’s research and technology, parachuting beavers would be the least likely option. Needless to say, it was a success for the 1940’s.
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF IDAHO FISH AND GAME