Last week, we had an award-winning author in our midst! On Thursday, May 18th, Leila Philip was at the Camp House to speak about everyone’s favorite semiaquatic rodent—beavers!

A New England native, Leila Philip is the author of several award-winning non-fiction books and currently teaches in the Environmental Studies Program at the College of the Holy Cross as a professor in the English department. Her latest book, BEAVERLAND: How One Weird Rodent Made America, tells the story of the beaver’s integral role in shaping America’s history, economy, and society. 

In BEAVERLAND, Leila writes about the beaver’s significance to the traditions of Native Americans, the beaver fur trade’s foundational role in America’s economy, and the far-reaching influence beavers continue to have on our environment. 

When she gets to talking about beavers, Leila lights up. In her view, the humble beaver has a pivotal role to play in fighting climate change. By damming up waterways, Leila says beavers create underground ‘sponges’ that purify water and protect the surrounding environment against flood, drought, and wildfire. Leila also touts that beavers represent one of our country’s greatest conservation success stories: during the height of the beaver fur trade the population was brought to the brink of extinction, but it has since rebounded. 

Leila calls beavers “ecosystem engineers” because they are the only animal apart from man that creates the habitat they need—in fact, the largest animal construction on earth is a beaver dam. But beavers also create habitats for many other species across the food chain, broadly benefiting the ecosystems on the waterways where they build their dams. If you want to dive deeper into the fascinating story of how beavers have shaped our world, you can purchase BEAVERLAND: How One Weird Rodent Made America here!

While she was here with us, we took Leila to see a local example of working with beavers instead of against them: the Chattanooga Parks & Outdoors Department recently painted trees on the riverfront with colorful mixtures of sand and non-toxic latex paint in order to discourage beavers from gnawing on the tree trunks. Beavers chewing on and weakening trees in public areas is a safety hazard, but all too often the wildlife management “solution” has been trapping and killing beaver populations. By instead deterring beavers from the trees, the Chattanooga Parks Department has found a more informed, humane approach to wildlife management. Their story has gained national acclaim—even being reported on by the CEO of the Humane Society of the United States—and drawn attention to Chattanooga’s leading role in environmental stewardship. 

We also took Leila on an evening canoe trip onto Lookout Creek to check out our local beaver population. And she wasn’t disappointed—the beavers came out in full force! Leila said she must’ve heard about 15 tail slaps while on the creek. 

Reflection Riding is home to a flourishing beaver population on the banks of Lookout Creek. However, for the past year, damage to our boardwalk caused by the emerald ash borer has meant that our canoes, dock, and boat launch have been unavailable to visitors. The emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis)—a beetle native to northeast Asia—has wreaked destruction on ash trees across North America after arriving inside shipping materials in 2002. They nest inside the bark of ash trees and create feeding galleries that restrict the tree's ability to transport nutrients. Dead ash trees near Reflection Riding’s boardwalk were toppled over by flooding, and because of the possibility of more trees falling, our team had to be careful in developing a lasting solution. We know that boat access to Lookout Creek is valued by our members, so we’re working hard on getting it reopened to the public very soon - we need your help! Please consider making a donation as we raise the last $5000 to finish up boardwalk repairs. We are also looking for carpentry volunteers to assist in repairs as well as other projects on campus. Currently, access is open for behind the scenes tours with staff - if you are interested in a private tour, please inquire here.  

A big thank you to The Patten Group, the City of Chattanooga Water Quality Program, Chattanooga Parks & Outdoors, the Robert Finley Stone Foundation, and former board member Ralph Brown! Because of their generous sponsorship, 100% of the BEAVERLAND event’s proceeds were able to go toward re-opening our boardwalk for canoe access to Lookout Creek. We had an amazing turnout of community members coming out to hear from Leila, get their BEAVERLAND books signed, and support the cause!