When looking for ways to help combat drought this summer, California is dipping back into the rich history of its native peoples.
To that end, a family of seven beavers was released by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) into a watershed in the southern Sierra Nevada.
In a news release, the CDFW explained the importance of beavers in the local ecosystem when it comes to water conservation and defense against wildfires.
“We were wondering how we can conserve, save water, get water here on our lands,” said Kenneth McDarment, a Tule River Tribe member and past tribal councilman. “The answer was in our pictographs.”
Beaver pictographs are present at Painted Rock near the South Fork Tule River and are estimated to be between 500 and 1,000 years old, according to the CDFW.
Beavers were also released on the Tule River Reservation into Miner Creek and more beaver reintroduction is expected in the future.