GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
Late 1940's air insertion of beavers. Project was to move beavers from areas where they were in conflict with new developments, to remote areas that had no feasible road route.
In the late 1940s, Idaho had a problem: too many beavers in the wrong place.
As farmland expanded and suburbs grew, beavers began clogging irrigation ditches and cutting down ornamental trees. But officials also knew that in the right environment, beavers are ecosystem engineers. Their dams slow streams, create wetlands, store water during droughts, and provide habitat for fish, birds, and countless other animals.
So the Idaho Fish and Game Department came up with a wild solution: move the beavers to remote valleys where they could thrive. But there was a catch – those valleys were so rugged and inaccessible that trucks or horses couldn’t reach them.
The answer? Parachutes.
Using surplus World War II gear, officials packed beavers into wooden crates with ventilation holes. Each crate was rigged with a parachute, pushed out of a plane, and designed to pop open on impact. The beavers would then scramble free and get to work.
Most of the beavers survived the drops – including one male nicknamed Geronimo, who was used in repeated test flights to make sure the method worked before any wild relocations took place.
In total, 76 beavers were air-dropped into the wilderness of central Idaho. Many built dams almost immediately, and their descendants still shape those valleys today.
It may sound bizarre, but it worked. In a single stroke, Idaho reduced conflict with humans, rewilded damaged ecosystems, and gave beavers a chance to do what they do best: build wetlands.
In the late 1940s, Idaho had a problem: too many beavers in the wrong place.
As farmland expanded and suburbs grew, beavers began clogging irrigation ditches and cutting down ornamental trees. But officials also knew that in the right environment, beavers are ecosystem engineers. Their dams slow streams, create wetlands, store water during droughts, and provide habitat for fish, birds, and countless other animals.
So the Idaho Fish and Game Department came up with a wild solution: move the beavers to remote valleys where they could thrive. But there was a catch – those valleys were so rugged and inaccessible that trucks or horses couldn’t reach them.
The answer? Parachutes.
Using surplus World War II gear, officials packed beavers into wooden crates with ventilation holes. Each crate was rigged with a parachute, pushed out of a plane, and designed to pop open on impact. The beavers would then scramble free and get to work.
Most of the beavers survived the drops – including one male nicknamed Geronimo, who was used in repeated test flights to make sure the method worked before any wild relocations took place.
In total, 76 beavers were air-dropped into the wilderness of central Idaho. Many built dams almost immediately, and their descendants still shape those valleys today.
It may sound bizarre, but it worked. In a single stroke, Idaho reduced conflict with humans, rewilded damaged ecosystems, and gave beavers a chance to do what they do best: build wetlands.
I see them working all the time when I take my walks.
