Overall goal achieved 2019 Beaver Worktype: 26 beavers were trapped from 12 sites where roadway and farm field flooding and hazard tree creation necessitated beaver removal. These beavers were relocated to one site in the South Fork Snoqualmie and three sites in the Skykomish watersheds. Channel Structure Placement Worktype: Maintained existing BDA lines at Burn Creek site in the Skykomish watershed. Education & Outreach: • Trained South Sound Beaver Recovery from Puyallup and San Louis Obispo Beaver Brigade • Presented to 60 attendees at Beavers Northwest sponsored outreach event. Amendments: Budget amendment completed due to delay in receiving funds to initiate this agreement. 2020 Beaver Worktype: N/A (see Challenges). Channel Structure Placement Worktype: No BDAs installed or maintained (see Challenges). Amendments: Cost increase request: Tulalip Tribes worked with RCO to complete cost increase and scope change amendments, and a new time extension amendment. No habitat restoration work was completed toward this grant during this reporting period due to extended furlough associated with Covid-19. We requested a 21-month time extension through March 31, 2023 to allow for another two field seasons of work. 2021 Beaver Worktype: During this reporting period project staff assessed previously occupied relocation sites for establishment success. It was found that four out of four sites remained established by relocated beavers. Three additional families of beavers (13 individuals) were relocated to the Snoqualmie watershed. Channel Structure Placement Worktype: Maintained of existing BDA lines at Burn Creek site and installed installed one new line at Blanca site, both in the Skykomish watershed. Education & Outreach: Funds were used to attend the 2022 BeaverCON Conference where staff presented on Tulalip Beaver Project successes and updates. Amendments: No-cost time extension, Special Conditions change. 2022 Beaver Worktype: Tulalip Beaver Project staff trapped and relocated a total of 23 beavers to eight sites this season. Three families (8 individuals) of beavers we moved to pre-selected sites in the Skykomish Watershed. TBP crew trapped and relocated beaver families from and additional four sites, three of which (10 individuals) were relocated in the Snoqualmie watershed and the remaining family (5 individuals) was relocated to the Stillaguamish watershed. End of season inventory was performed for all relocation sites. Channel Structure Placement Worktype: Maintained existing BDA lines at Burn Creek site in the Skykomish watershed. Primary outdoor recreation opportunity provided N/A. Primary type of habitat to be protected or restored Instream and riparian habitat benefitted from our beaver relocation work. Priority species supported We observed localized increases in biodiversity from game camera footage in the areas that our beavers successfully altered wetland habitat from ESA listed salmon, to amphibians, songbirds, and mammals. Summary At the end of the reporting period, five of the sites that receive beavers remain active, with 3 additional sites still being monitored for permanent occupancy. Three sites have been confirmed inactive and two additional sites were restored using Beaver Dam Analogs but have yet to retain beavers in the monitored reach. Additionally, three relocation sites were identified in the Stillaguamish watershed and one of those sites received beavers during the agreement period but unfortunately did not stick. Dams were constructed by relocated beavers at two relocation sites, one in the Skykomish watershed and another in the Snoqualmie watershed. Challenges Several amendments were performed to the agreement over the life of the grant ranging from name change and watershed expansion to time extension and cost changes. Unable to spend entirety by amended end date. Tulalip staff we furloughed for a four-month period during the 2020 season which lead to staff layoffs and major delays to seasonal beaver relocation work. This necessitated a lengthy agreement amendment process that did not allow spending of these funds until the 2021 field season. While wetted edge data were collected using UAVs during this reporting period, new equipment and imagery processing issues did not allow us to report accurate surface water increases for this relocation period. Issue with internal staff time to rectify these images to accurately calculate wetted edge improvements. Hydrologic conditions varied widely each season, with some heavy winter flows preventing establishment and low summer conditions making many one-eligible sites ineligible for relocation so options for where beavers could be placed was limited. We experimented with the use of Beaver Dam Analogs to improve site conditions but thus far no beavers have remained long-term at BDA sites, although they have added complexity via plunge pools and increased water storage at these sites. Include Stilly issues – therefore we will not be continuing our relocation efforts in this watershed until we are able to obtain permission to enhance the habitat with the use of BDAs. 2022 Bolt Creek Fire: Prevented months of monitoring and relocation work in the Skykomish and Stillaguamish watersheds due to access issues and air quality conditions. Remaining funds: Unfortunately, due to all of these unforeseen conditions and delays, we were unable to spend the entirety of the allocated funds by the final amended end date of the agreement. In the Fall of 2022, the project manager, Molly Alves, began graduate school. Therefore, she was away from work responsibilities for ~8 months in 2023. For this reason, we have been delayed in submitting closeout reporting for this award. Therefore, we want to again offer our sincerest apologies for the delay and want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all who helped administer this grant, namely Jennifer Williams and apologize for final reporting delay. Identify what was acquired, restored, developed, and/or designed with grant funds • Beaver trapping lure • Chlorohexidine antiseptic • Hip waders • Wheelbarrow for hatchery maintenance • Multitools for field staff • Headlamps for early morning trap checking • Emergency field kit • Cedar wood chips for captive beaver bedding • Work gloves • Hand sanitizer • Plywood for temporary beaver housing • Nuts/screws for game camera deployment • Rodent pellets for captive beaver food • SD card reader • Bar chain oil and safety chaps for BDA construction • Lithium batteries for game cameras • Machete for trap and field site navigation • Rope and carabiners for beaver trap anchoring • Truck bed liner for safe beaver transport • Installed and maintained Beaver Dam Analogs at two project locations Miles of trail maintained, hours of education/outreach, etc. Education and Outreach • Training: South Sound Beaver Recovery group from Puyallup in beaver relocation techniques • Training: Hosted WDFW/TUL Certified Beaver Relocator training from 2019-2023. • Training: SLO Beaver Brigade from California in safe capture and transport, habitat suitability analysis. • Outreach: Co-hosted event with Nonprofit partners Beavers Northwest (presented to ~60 participants). • Presentation: BeaverCON 2022 Conference in Baltimore, MD, June 14-16, 2022. • Presentation: National Beaver Working Group Science Committee, October 17, 2022. Upcoming collaborative beaver research with The Tulalip Tribes and Utah State University. • Presentation: Waterstories Webinar Presentation, June 8, 2022. Presented to hundreds of webinar participants alongside Dr. Emily Fairfax and Ben Goldfarb. • Article: How the Tulalip and Yurok Tribes Protect Wildlife https://www.mutualofomaha.com/wild-kingdom/media-center/article/how-the-tulalip-and-yurok-tribes-protect-wildlife • Article: New York Times, September 6, 2022 “It was war, then a rancher’s truce with some pesky beavers paid off” https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/06/climate/climate-change-beavers.html?searchResultPosition=2 • Film: BBC Earth: Changing Planet, Episode air date: April 20, 2023 The Tulalip Beaver Project spent three days filming with the BBC Earth documentary crew for their series Changing Planet.