Swift Fox Relocation Efforts to Fort Belknap A Success, 10 Pups Spotted

 

June 22, 2022

This Spring two litters of Swift Fox have been confirmed on Fort Belknap with at least 10 Swift Fox pups being accounted for. This comes on the heels of a second round of trans-locations back in 2021.

The Fort Belknap Indian Reservation has been very involved in bringing back many of Montana's treasured species. One of Fort Belknap Reservations most recent endeavors involved the reintroduction of the Swift Fox. Once the Swift Fox thrived in the great plains with large populations flourishing from Alberta and Saskatchewan in Canada all the way south to New Mexico and Texas in the southern United States. In the 1800's Swift Fox were extremely common throughout Montana and Southern Canada. The Coyote and Wolf populations of the time however were decimating livestock herds and a massive eradication effort took place. The end of the 1800s and first part of the 1900s saw an almost complete erasure of the Wolf population and a significant drop in coyote numbers. Caught up in the crossfire was a nearly complete wipe out of the Swift Fox population.

Trapping and poisoning efforts to control the Wolf and Coyote numbers were the most common means to address the issue at the time and had a significant impact on surviving Swift Fox Pairs. The relentless attack was dramatic to the Swift Fox, eventually leading to their designation as an extinct species by 1969 in Montana and southern Canada. Small groups of Swift Fox however remained in the central and southern portions of its original range.

In 1978 the Swift Fox was designated as an endangered species in Canada but didn't earn the same designation until many years later (1992) in the United States. Reintroduction efforts in the United States first began in 1983 with nearly 1,000 bred captive animals being reintroduced prior to 1997. In an effort to improve reintroduction efforts, the Swift Fox conservation Team (SFCT) was formed in 1994 and included 10 state Wildlife agencies including the Montana fish Wildlife and Parks.

The Blackfeet Indian Reservation saw 123 Swift Fox reintroduced between 1998 and 2002. Years later the Fort Peck Indian Reservation received 60 Swift Fox between 2006 and 2010. Following an extensive study, the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation navigated through Covid-19 protocols back in 2020 to establish a working plan to reintroduce the Swift Fox to the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation.

Prior to any reintroduction taking place, several steps were needed to be taken to determine if the idea was even feasible. Department and Smithsonian scientists followed IUCN guidelines to make this determination. A visual inspection of the entire landscape was made to make sure that there is enough food and habitat for them to live. Swift Fox tend to favor flat landscapes with short-grasses and soils that can be easily dug for burrows to be used for shelter. Upon determining the land to be suitable, expert advice was sought on how many foxes we would need to release each year in order to ensure a healthy population.

With a plan in place scientists presented the results to a group of Swift Fox experts, including wildlife biologists, researchers, representatives from American Indian tribes, Bureau of Indian Affairs, state and federal agencies and local NGOs. After a thorough discussion of the research results, the Department moved forward to set the reintroduction plan, goals and budget. The reintroduction protocol called for reintroduction to take place over the course of five years and originally was set to include 40-50 animals being relocated from Wyoming, Colorado and Kansas to in hopes to establish a viable population on the Reservation. The Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Department continues to seek the communities help in monitoring these Swift Fox to help ensure this project become a success similar the Black-Footed Ferret reintroduction now established on Snake Butte.

This spring the relocation efforts have proven to be a success with at least 10 Swift Fox pups having been spotted. A recent sighting verified two collared adults with six pups and efforts are underway to locate all the pups born. Tribal officials have confirmed that two litters have been born and locating these litters is crucial in determining how and where the population is growing and succeeding. Swift Fox litters typically have 2-6 pups. If you see a swift fox or one of their den sites with pups, please report the sighting to Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Department at 406-353-8471 or via the link here: https://arcg.is/0uua1e; this will help keep the location private and the family safe from disturbance!

Currently the Swift Fox has been successfully reintroduced to 40% of its former range. Swift Fox are now having significant populations in two areas of their historical range. First a southern population in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming and South Dakota. The second being a northern, reintroduced population, in Montana, Alberta and Saskatchewan. These two groups of native and reintroduced Swift Fox populations are separated by a gap in their new territory. The former range still uninhabited occurs largely in southeastern and east-central Montana.

 
 

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