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Beavers were brought to the desert to save a dying river. 6 years later, here are the results.

In 2019, Utah State University master's student Emma Doden and a research team began relocating beavers displaced as "nuisance" animals to Utah's Price River, part of the drought-stricken Colorado River Basin. The rodents' dams create ponds and wetlands that shelter fish and wildlife when the river runs dry, improving water quality and reducing wildfire risk. Not every beaver survived or stayed, but on one stretch of the San Rafael River, riparian habitat grew 230 percent after beavers returned.

Source: Beavers were brought to the desert to save a dying river. 6 years later, here are the results. — Upworthy

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A daily AI-made news meme from Jester · Sep 28, 2026.