Mapping and Tracking Beaver in the Snohomish Delta Tidal Marshes

Led by Todd Zackey, Tulalip Tribe

The team will trap eight beavers in the Snohomish Delta tidal marshes and affix GPS transmitters to them to log their locations. They will use this information along with existing maps of tidal channels, vegetation communities, beaver dams and lodges to calculate daily travel distances and routes, preferred habitat, activity patterns, and territory size. Because tidal beavers are unstudied outside of this research, this will all be novel information. It will provide guidance for tidal marsh restoration that accommodates tidal beavers and their ecosystem functions. This project is funded through SeaDoc Society's Tribes and First Nations Grant.