Dr. Emily Fairfax
@emilyfairfax.bsky.social
Assistant Professor of Geography at the University of Minnesota and the St. Anthony Falls Lab. Ecohydrologist, beaver dam enthusiast, and advocate for inclusive curriculum. Ask me about beavers! she/her
Beavers? Robotics? A Messy Chalkboard? A Bunch of Animals? Chaos?
All my favorite things! In one movie!
Check out the new trailer for Pixar's Hoppers, coming out this spring!
youtu.be/PypDSyIRRSs?...
All my favorite things! In one movie!
Check out the new trailer for Pixar's Hoppers, coming out this spring!
youtu.be/PypDSyIRRSs?...
Hoppers | Official Trailer
YouTube video by Pixar
youtu.be
November 20, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Beavers? Robotics? A Messy Chalkboard? A Bunch of Animals? Chaos?
All my favorite things! In one movie!
Check out the new trailer for Pixar's Hoppers, coming out this spring!
youtu.be/PypDSyIRRSs?...
All my favorite things! In one movie!
Check out the new trailer for Pixar's Hoppers, coming out this spring!
youtu.be/PypDSyIRRSs?...
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
Beavers can boost water storage, wildlife habitat, and carbon capture. A new mapping tool helps identify sites where beaver reintroduction programs could deliver ecological benefits.
Learn more: stanford.io/4prrRsf
#biodiversity #naturalclimatesolutions
Learn more: stanford.io/4prrRsf
#biodiversity #naturalclimatesolutions
November 18, 2025 at 6:49 PM
Beavers can boost water storage, wildlife habitat, and carbon capture. A new mapping tool helps identify sites where beaver reintroduction programs could deliver ecological benefits.
Learn more: stanford.io/4prrRsf
#biodiversity #naturalclimatesolutions
Learn more: stanford.io/4prrRsf
#biodiversity #naturalclimatesolutions
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
!!Absolutely fabulous!!
A slightly surreal moment hearing Dame Joanna Lumley narrate my PhD research. Thankyou to Nina Constable and @emccandlessphoto.bsky.social for letting me play a small part in this film. A brilliant film on beavers and migratory fish!🦫🐟
Link: m.youtube.com/watch?v=uZE5...
A slightly surreal moment hearing Dame Joanna Lumley narrate my PhD research. Thankyou to Nina Constable and @emccandlessphoto.bsky.social for letting me play a small part in this film. A brilliant film on beavers and migratory fish!🦫🐟
Link: m.youtube.com/watch?v=uZE5...
November 6, 2025 at 9:46 PM
!!Absolutely fabulous!!
A slightly surreal moment hearing Dame Joanna Lumley narrate my PhD research. Thankyou to Nina Constable and @emccandlessphoto.bsky.social for letting me play a small part in this film. A brilliant film on beavers and migratory fish!🦫🐟
Link: m.youtube.com/watch?v=uZE5...
A slightly surreal moment hearing Dame Joanna Lumley narrate my PhD research. Thankyou to Nina Constable and @emccandlessphoto.bsky.social for letting me play a small part in this film. A brilliant film on beavers and migratory fish!🦫🐟
Link: m.youtube.com/watch?v=uZE5...
A great example of compromising with beavers!
Beavs are stubborn little engineers and don’t particularly care to pull permits or share their design plans with us. Luckily, humans are clever engineers too and can share (not take!) control of the water with a bit of fencing and some pipes!
Beavs are stubborn little engineers and don’t particularly care to pull permits or share their design plans with us. Luckily, humans are clever engineers too and can share (not take!) control of the water with a bit of fencing and some pipes!
This beaver dam -- built in September -- requires management. When the water gets too high, it leaks out towards our nearby road. We already installed 2 "beaver deceiver" pipes in the dam to lower the flow, but recent rains showed a 3rd was needed. That's me clearing a breach for the new pipe. (1/4)
November 3, 2025 at 10:02 PM
A great example of compromising with beavers!
Beavs are stubborn little engineers and don’t particularly care to pull permits or share their design plans with us. Luckily, humans are clever engineers too and can share (not take!) control of the water with a bit of fencing and some pipes!
Beavs are stubborn little engineers and don’t particularly care to pull permits or share their design plans with us. Luckily, humans are clever engineers too and can share (not take!) control of the water with a bit of fencing and some pipes!
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
We are working with partners on data management and visualization for effectiveness monitoring of #processbasedrestoration . Check out the #storymap linked in our bio on the Colorado Headwaters PBR #science project.
storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/4c8b...
storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/4c8b...
Following the Flow
Colorado Headwaters Restoration Science Program
storymaps.arcgis.com
October 25, 2025 at 12:18 PM
We are working with partners on data management and visualization for effectiveness monitoring of #processbasedrestoration . Check out the #storymap linked in our bio on the Colorado Headwaters PBR #science project.
storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/4c8b...
storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/4c8b...
Do you like learning about beavers but don't have brain space for reading another technical study right now?
Do you enjoy storytelling?
Are you or is someone you know a kid?
If you answered yes to any of the above, then check out this episode of Terrestrials!
www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/rad...
Do you enjoy storytelling?
Are you or is someone you know a kid?
If you answered yes to any of the above, then check out this episode of Terrestrials!
www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/rad...
The Builders: How Beavers Mend Our Planet | Radiolab for Kids Presents: Terrestrials | WNYC Studios
A creature whose footprints produce and protect life.
www.wnycstudios.org
September 22, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Do you like learning about beavers but don't have brain space for reading another technical study right now?
Do you enjoy storytelling?
Are you or is someone you know a kid?
If you answered yes to any of the above, then check out this episode of Terrestrials!
www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/rad...
Do you enjoy storytelling?
Are you or is someone you know a kid?
If you answered yes to any of the above, then check out this episode of Terrestrials!
www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/rad...
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
In Minnesota, beavers have long been considered a nuisance, thanks to their ability to gnaw trees and construct dams that sometimes clog culverts, raise lake levels or flood roads. But among scientists, there’s a growing recognition that these engineers bring a host of environmental benefits.
As nature’s ‘ecosystem engineers,’ beavers could help fight effects of climate change
Beaver dams reduce flooding, create wetlands that boost biodiversity and can even slow wildfires. But bringing back beavers would require a shift in public attitude — and finding ways for humans and beavers to coexist.
www.mprnews.org
September 11, 2025 at 2:57 PM
In Minnesota, beavers have long been considered a nuisance, thanks to their ability to gnaw trees and construct dams that sometimes clog culverts, raise lake levels or flood roads. But among scientists, there’s a growing recognition that these engineers bring a host of environmental benefits.
Beavers are admittedly chaotic and work their ecosystem magic in sometimes mysterious ways.
But we’re trying our best to understand them & work together to fight wildfires!
Check out this article covering Luwen’s recent paper and some of my previous fire + beavs work!
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
But we’re trying our best to understand them & work together to fight wildfires!
Check out this article covering Luwen’s recent paper and some of my previous fire + beavs work!
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
How beavers could help fight wildfires | CBC News
New research out of the western U.S. suggests dams and ponds built by beavers can slow floods, store water and even create green firebreaks in wildfire-prone landscapes.
www.cbc.ca
August 31, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Beavers are admittedly chaotic and work their ecosystem magic in sometimes mysterious ways.
But we’re trying our best to understand them & work together to fight wildfires!
Check out this article covering Luwen’s recent paper and some of my previous fire + beavs work!
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
But we’re trying our best to understand them & work together to fight wildfires!
Check out this article covering Luwen’s recent paper and some of my previous fire + beavs work!
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
🦫 Bringing back #beavers – and the nature-based solutions they offer for #freshwater, #biodiversity, and #ClimateResilience
New study uses #RemoteSensing to map beaver dams + ponds with an eye toward prioritizing areas for restoration and reintroducing beavers.
🔗 bit.ly/bringing-back-beavers
New study uses #RemoteSensing to map beaver dams + ponds with an eye toward prioritizing areas for restoration and reintroducing beavers.
🔗 bit.ly/bringing-back-beavers
August 11, 2025 at 8:13 PM
🦫 Bringing back #beavers – and the nature-based solutions they offer for #freshwater, #biodiversity, and #ClimateResilience
New study uses #RemoteSensing to map beaver dams + ponds with an eye toward prioritizing areas for restoration and reintroducing beavers.
🔗 bit.ly/bringing-back-beavers
New study uses #RemoteSensing to map beaver dams + ponds with an eye toward prioritizing areas for restoration and reintroducing beavers.
🔗 bit.ly/bringing-back-beavers
Many people want to bring back #beavers for water storage. Big ponds = big benefits for flood, drought, wildfire & more! But what drives big ponds? Is it *just* dam length? What drives dam length?
Get your answers in this new paper by Luwen Wan, Kate Maher, & myself!
www.nature.com/articles/s43...
Get your answers in this new paper by Luwen Wan, Kate Maher, & myself!
www.nature.com/articles/s43...
Factors influencing surface water accumulation in beaver pond complexes across the Western United States - Communications Earth & Environment
Dam length, woody vegetation height, and stream power index explain 74% of the variation in pond area, providing a foundation for beaver restoration and watershed management in the western US, accordi...
www.nature.com
August 11, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Many people want to bring back #beavers for water storage. Big ponds = big benefits for flood, drought, wildfire & more! But what drives big ponds? Is it *just* dam length? What drives dam length?
Get your answers in this new paper by Luwen Wan, Kate Maher, & myself!
www.nature.com/articles/s43...
Get your answers in this new paper by Luwen Wan, Kate Maher, & myself!
www.nature.com/articles/s43...
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
New job alert! Interested in applied research increasing our understanding of water resilience, nature based solutions and rewilding? @exeter.ac.uk we are looking for a Technical Specialist, working with me and others in Geography and @uoe-creww.bsky.social
jobs.exeter.ac.uk/hrpr_webrecr...
jobs.exeter.ac.uk/hrpr_webrecr...
August 5, 2025 at 11:06 AM
New job alert! Interested in applied research increasing our understanding of water resilience, nature based solutions and rewilding? @exeter.ac.uk we are looking for a Technical Specialist, working with me and others in Geography and @uoe-creww.bsky.social
jobs.exeter.ac.uk/hrpr_webrecr...
jobs.exeter.ac.uk/hrpr_webrecr...
Can you predict where a beaver will build a dam? Or how many dams they will build?
There are many models for beaver habitat availability & dam building potential. One thing they all have in common? They need to be calibrated with local knowledge of place-based beaver behavioral adaptations!
There are many models for beaver habitat availability & dam building potential. One thing they all have in common? They need to be calibrated with local knowledge of place-based beaver behavioral adaptations!
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 25, 2025 at 8:33 PM
Can you predict where a beaver will build a dam? Or how many dams they will build?
There are many models for beaver habitat availability & dam building potential. One thing they all have in common? They need to be calibrated with local knowledge of place-based beaver behavioral adaptations!
There are many models for beaver habitat availability & dam building potential. One thing they all have in common? They need to be calibrated with local knowledge of place-based beaver behavioral adaptations!
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
Check out our new paper "Ecohydrological drivers of Boreal Shield peatland fire refugia" in Ecohydrology.
Authors: Alex Tekatch, Chantel Markle, Sophie Wilkinson, Paul Moore, @mercury-ecohydro.bsky.social, @peatofmind.bsky.social
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Authors: Alex Tekatch, Chantel Markle, Sophie Wilkinson, Paul Moore, @mercury-ecohydro.bsky.social, @peatofmind.bsky.social
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
July 22, 2025 at 1:21 PM
Check out our new paper "Ecohydrological drivers of Boreal Shield peatland fire refugia" in Ecohydrology.
Authors: Alex Tekatch, Chantel Markle, Sophie Wilkinson, Paul Moore, @mercury-ecohydro.bsky.social, @peatofmind.bsky.social
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Authors: Alex Tekatch, Chantel Markle, Sophie Wilkinson, Paul Moore, @mercury-ecohydro.bsky.social, @peatofmind.bsky.social
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
Beaver champion @emilyfairfax.bsky.social telling PBS News about how important beavers are in flood management. She does an amazing job of quickly and memorably explaining what beavers do and why. Also: Did you know beavers make "snuggle piles"?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpLu...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpLu...
WATCH: What role do beavers play in flood management?
YouTube video by PBS NewsHour
www.youtube.com
July 18, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Beaver champion @emilyfairfax.bsky.social telling PBS News about how important beavers are in flood management. She does an amazing job of quickly and memorably explaining what beavers do and why. Also: Did you know beavers make "snuggle piles"?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpLu...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpLu...
I had the very cool opportunity to be interviewed on @pbsnews.org for "Tipping Point: the Mighty Mississippi".
Check it out to hear all about how #beavers were part of the Mississippi River Basin's past, and need to be part of its future as climate changes!
www.youtube.com/live/C9NyCr4...
Check it out to hear all about how #beavers were part of the Mississippi River Basin's past, and need to be part of its future as climate changes!
www.youtube.com/live/C9NyCr4...
July 17, 2025 at 5:20 PM
I had the very cool opportunity to be interviewed on @pbsnews.org for "Tipping Point: the Mighty Mississippi".
Check it out to hear all about how #beavers were part of the Mississippi River Basin's past, and need to be part of its future as climate changes!
www.youtube.com/live/C9NyCr4...
Check it out to hear all about how #beavers were part of the Mississippi River Basin's past, and need to be part of its future as climate changes!
www.youtube.com/live/C9NyCr4...
Me, standing on a dam and talking to a film crew: sorry we will almost certainly not see any actual beavers today. They’re usually sleeping in the middle of the day, especially when it’s super hot out like today.
This beav at 12pm sharp: sup
This beav at 12pm sharp: sup
July 14, 2025 at 8:57 PM
Me, standing on a dam and talking to a film crew: sorry we will almost certainly not see any actual beavers today. They’re usually sleeping in the middle of the day, especially when it’s super hot out like today.
This beav at 12pm sharp: sup
This beav at 12pm sharp: sup
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
Thanks @emilyfairfax.bsky.social for the great tour of Saint Anthony Falls Laboratory! Excited to hear about your projects underway & to see the coolness of this science & the Mighty Mississippi up close! @carleton.edu loves beavers too! Can’t wait to see you flood an experimental channel.
July 10, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Thanks @emilyfairfax.bsky.social for the great tour of Saint Anthony Falls Laboratory! Excited to hear about your projects underway & to see the coolness of this science & the Mighty Mississippi up close! @carleton.edu loves beavers too! Can’t wait to see you flood an experimental channel.
Things I’d like to learn from #beavers: how to be famously productive while also being unhurried, unstressed, and peaceful as I go about my work.
April 25, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Things I’d like to learn from #beavers: how to be famously productive while also being unhurried, unstressed, and peaceful as I go about my work.
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
If you've heard me talk about Western U.S. wildfire, you've probably heard me mention that while *baseline* fire risk is lower in the (moister) East, the *conditional* risk can still be extremely high when conditions align (including, as here, in and downwind of pine barrens in New Jersey today).
Impressive fire activity today in New Jersey. Here is a 3D radar view of the plume structure from the #JonesFire during its peak fire intensity.
April 23, 2025 at 3:11 AM
If you've heard me talk about Western U.S. wildfire, you've probably heard me mention that while *baseline* fire risk is lower in the (moister) East, the *conditional* risk can still be extremely high when conditions align (including, as here, in and downwind of pine barrens in New Jersey today).
Happy International #Beaver Day!
Do you have a question about beavers, their wetlands, or how they relate to climate change? Ask it here!
I’ll be sharing bits of beaver knowledge throughout the day, and if there is a question I *don’t* know the answer to, I will know who to ask to get it!
Do you have a question about beavers, their wetlands, or how they relate to climate change? Ask it here!
I’ll be sharing bits of beaver knowledge throughout the day, and if there is a question I *don’t* know the answer to, I will know who to ask to get it!
April 7, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Happy International #Beaver Day!
Do you have a question about beavers, their wetlands, or how they relate to climate change? Ask it here!
I’ll be sharing bits of beaver knowledge throughout the day, and if there is a question I *don’t* know the answer to, I will know who to ask to get it!
Do you have a question about beavers, their wetlands, or how they relate to climate change? Ask it here!
I’ll be sharing bits of beaver knowledge throughout the day, and if there is a question I *don’t* know the answer to, I will know who to ask to get it!
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
@emilyfairfax.bsky.social Glad you came over from Twitter. I thought you'd like a couple Massachusetts beaver photos that almost look like artwork. These they are carving in a solid white oak, March of 2025 on the Stillwater River. We seem to have hardy beavers here.
April 1, 2025 at 11:15 AM
@emilyfairfax.bsky.social Glad you came over from Twitter. I thought you'd like a couple Massachusetts beaver photos that almost look like artwork. These they are carving in a solid white oak, March of 2025 on the Stillwater River. We seem to have hardy beavers here.
Need some easy Friday listening? Interested in #beavers? Check out the latest episode of the Western Governor's Association podcast! Me, Alex Funk, Chris Jordan, Marshall Wolf, and Jerry Altermatt talk beavers, BDAs, science + policy & connect it to disaster mitigation.
westgov.org/news/article...
westgov.org/news/article...
Leave it to Beaver: How Nature’s Engineers are Helping Us Mitigate Disasters
The history of the West has always been defined by water. Long before settlers arrived, Indigenous peoples designed complex water management systems to cultivate the arid land. In the 19th and 20th ce...
westgov.org
March 28, 2025 at 4:40 PM
Need some easy Friday listening? Interested in #beavers? Check out the latest episode of the Western Governor's Association podcast! Me, Alex Funk, Chris Jordan, Marshall Wolf, and Jerry Altermatt talk beavers, BDAs, science + policy & connect it to disaster mitigation.
westgov.org/news/article...
westgov.org/news/article...
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
Reposted by Dr. Emily Fairfax
A wildfire swept through Wyoming’s Medicine Bow Forest in 2020, yet one green oasis remained: a beaver-engineered wetland. 🔥
Scientist @emilyfairfax.bsky.social is proving what nature has long known: beavers are the solution.
📺 Full story: youtu.be/F-HWKkIyfl0?...
#BeaverPower #ClimateResilience
Scientist @emilyfairfax.bsky.social is proving what nature has long known: beavers are the solution.
📺 Full story: youtu.be/F-HWKkIyfl0?...
#BeaverPower #ClimateResilience
Why engineers are turning to beavers for insights into managing water resources
YouTube video by PBS NewsHour
youtu.be
February 21, 2025 at 6:44 PM
A wildfire swept through Wyoming’s Medicine Bow Forest in 2020, yet one green oasis remained: a beaver-engineered wetland. 🔥
Scientist @emilyfairfax.bsky.social is proving what nature has long known: beavers are the solution.
📺 Full story: youtu.be/F-HWKkIyfl0?...
#BeaverPower #ClimateResilience
Scientist @emilyfairfax.bsky.social is proving what nature has long known: beavers are the solution.
📺 Full story: youtu.be/F-HWKkIyfl0?...
#BeaverPower #ClimateResilience