Rare Swift Foxes Reintroduced on Blackfeet Reservation
The foxes are being returned to the region through a unique partnership between Defenders of Wildlife, the Blackfeet Nation and the Cochrane Ecological Institute (CEI), with the goal of restoring a self-sustaining population. CEI, one of the world's only swift fox captive-breeding facilities, is providing the foxes; the Blackfeet Fish and Wildlife Department is providing the site and assisting with the reintroduction; and Defenders of Wildlife coordinates the project and funds the release and tribal biologists to monitor the foxes.
"It is very encouraging to know that these small foxes will once again roam the prairies where they belong," said Rodger Schlickeisen, president of Defenders of Wildlife. "The recovery of rare species nationwide depends on innovative partnerships such as this."
A total of 97 swift foxes have been released since the first release in 1998. The foxes have produced litters every year and tracking data indicates excellent survivorship of radio-collared foxes. "We seem to be on track toward restoring the swift fox to area" said Minette Johnson, program associate for Defenders "People have been able to enjoy watching them throughout the Blackfeet reservation as well as further south."
The swift fox was once common on the Blackfeet Reservation and throughout Montana. When Lewis and Clark passed through the area in 1806, they reported swift foxes at the confluence of the Two Medicine and Marias Rivers. But the last confirmed trapping of a swift fox in Montana occurred in 1953. The species was declared extinct in the state in 1969. The fox's disappearance was a result of numerous factors, including incidental poisoning by bait set out for wolves and coyotes, trapping, habitat loss to agriculture, and loss of food sources like prairie dogs and ground squirrels as part of federal eradication campaigns.
Named for its speediness, the swift fox is one of North America's smallest canids, weighing an average of 5 pounds and measuring 12 inches in height and 31 inches in length. It is buffy-gray along its back, with yellowish tan across its sides and legs. It has a broader skull, shorter ears, shorter tail, and slightly larger body than its cousin the kit fox. The swift fox is an opportunistic predator feeding on ground squirrels and other small mammals, grasshoppers, and berries.
The foxes have received a warm reception from the community on the Blackfeet Reservation. In the words of Ira Newbreast, director of the Blackfeet Fish and Wildlife Department, "The swift fox, "Senopah", has great meaning for the Blackfeet people. We are excited to be restoring him to our home."
Reintroduction of the swift fox is possible due to the support of a number of philanthropic foundations, including the Bradley Fund for the Environment of the Sand County Foundation, the Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund, the Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation, the Shared Earth Foundation, and the Fanwood Foundation.
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