CWB Speakers Night – Busy beavers: Engineers of ecosystems and watersheds?

Busy beavers: Engineers of ecosystems and watersheds?
Join Aquatic Habitat Biologist Lars Reese-Hansen as he explores the wide-ranging effects of beavers on landscapes throughout North America and beyond.
Beavers are a familiar and charismatic animal found throughout most of Canada, including here in the Quw’utsun (Cowichan) watershed. Their dam and lodge building activities are well-known and have significant impacts on the ways that water moves through and is stored throughout our watersheds. Consequently, beavers are sometimes referred to as “ecosystem engineers”; however, the broad-ranging influences that beavers have on the watersheds they call home are not always well understood, leading to significant discourse around whether beavers positively or negatively shape watersheds and the communities within them.

When: Monday, April 20th, 2026, from 7-8:30pm.
Where: Vancouver Island University, Cowichan Campus, Lecture Hall 140 (2011 University Way, Duncan).
Cost: Free!