Where Have All the Swift Foxes Gone?

Where Have All The Swift Foxes Gone?

The swift fox (Vulpes velox), one of the smallest foxes in the world, and can only be found in the Great Plains of North America. Smaller and more slender than the Red Fox, the Swift Fox has lighter tones of colors. A buffy-yellow with a black tip on its bushy tail signifies the Swift Fox. With relatively large and pointed ears, the Swift Fox has excellent hearing. The fur grows in thicker towards the end of the summer. Only about the size of a house cat, the Swift Fox stands about 30 cm high and weighs about 2.7 kilograms. The swift fox gets its name because it can reach speeds of up to 40 km per hour, and some have recorded it at 60 km per hour. A carnivore that hunts continually from dusk to dawn, the Swift Fox covers great distances each night. They eat what they can catch, including small mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects, grasses and berries. At one time the fox could be found in great numbers all over the Canadian grasslands of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. Their U.S. range included several states between North Dakota and the Mexican border. The swift fox is now endangered in 90% of its historical habitat range. This fearless animal is protected under the federal Species at Risk Act (SARA). The reasons for the disappearance of swift foxes in both Canada and the U.S. are uncertain, but "the fact that swift foxes appear to be dependent on dens throughout the year implies a need for protection in a habitat where cover is sparse. Coyotes, eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, and Rough-legged Hawks have been listed as enemies of swift foxes. However, it is humans that pose the most significant threat to the survival of the species, both directly, by trapping, poisoning, and hunting, and indirectly though the destruction of suitable habitat" (Barr, Dragoo, 320).

"On a recent afternoon at Badlands National Park in South Dakota, a prairie dog colony comes to life. Jittery prairie dog sentinels stand on their hind legs, bleating warnings that a scattered group of invaders is approaching. Nearby, a resident badger emerges from its den in a puff of dust; a burrowing owl sprints through the short grass to snatch a mouse diving for cover; and coyotes position themselves beside a warren of prairie dog holes, ready to pounce" (Wilkinson 22). As the winds gracefully blow through the lands, only the black tipped bushy tail of the swift fox racing through the tall grass can not be found. Nor can the furry creature be found curled up amongst the grass and dirt floor of its den. The swift fox may be a very fast creature for its size; however, the decline in numbers was even faster.

"Foxes are curious and have little fear of people so they are easy to kill" (The Swift Fox [Volpes Velox] 1). In 1969, the American Fur Company's returns had been examined and "found that 10,614 swift fox pelts were traded at their posts covering western Montana and the Dakotas from 1835 to 1839. The records of the Hudson's Bay Company showed 117,025 pelts being purchased during 1835 to 1837" (Schauster, Gese, Kitchen 307-308). Although frequently mentioned by early fur traders, swift fox pelts had never been highly prized. Many considered the skins of the Swift Fox too small and the fur too coarse to be of significant value. "Naturalist Ernest Thompson Seton quoted prices ranging from $0.30 per pelt in 1906 to $8.35 per pelt in the boom years after World War I. Pelts sold in England were often dyed to imitate better-quality fox pelts" (Standley 1). "During the 20th century, the swift fox disappeared completely from the wild in Canada. This happened at a very quick pace. The last record of a swift fox in Canada was made in 1928 and the species was formally declared extirpated in 1978" (Schauster, Gese, Kitchen 308). In spite of their low value as furbearers, swift foxes are frequently caught in traps set for other more valuable species, such as red foxes and coyotes. In the early 1900's, massive amounts of swift foxes had been destroyed accidentally during the predator control programs aimed at removing the coyotes, wolves, and ground squirrels from the prairies. Even today, some people continue to mistake the swift fox for young coyotes; remotely ending it's life due to the ignorance of humans.

Traps had not been the only method used to catch the predators of the prairie. "A poison known as compound 1080" (Swift Fox 2) also played an immense role in the decline in the population of the swift fox. The poison campaigns had also been used to eradicate prairie dogs as well as other predators. Based on the belief of cattle ranchers; prairie dogs ate too much grass, depriving cattle of fodder, thus initiating the use of poison campaigns. The US government sponsored the destruction of prairie dog towns beginning in 1900. The poisoning program had been bolstered by inaccurate information from the US Biological Survey. Using the highly toxic poison, 1080, prairie dog towns had been devastated; killing vast numbers of animals including swift foxes who fed on the poisoned prairie dogs. The poison campaigns that had once been authorized by the government have been very detrimental to the swift fox population.

The conversion of native prairie grasslands to farmland has also reduced both the quantity and quality of habitat available to the swift fox over much of its former range. "The most dire threat the swift fox faces is the conservation of its natural habitat to farmland" (Bayles 1). The agricultural, industrial, and urban development has assisted in the reduction in numbers of the swift fox. Due to the conversion of the prairie to dry-land agriculture these foxes faced homelessness, and had no place to go; along with many other species. Swift Foxes prefer open, sparsely vegetated short-grass and mixed-grass prairie, where visibility and mobility are unimpeded. "For swift fox populations to thrive, it is important that suitable den habitat be available. Dens are usually located on well-drained slopes and hilltops near permanent water bodies" (Wilkinson 23). The lands that these foxes roam seem to be ideal for many cattle ranches, thus the main cause for the depletion of the swift fox population may be the loss of its habitat. Many come to the open lands not knowing how destructive they can be. Although in this case their lack of knowledge and unawareness has caused an entire species to become endangered and in a dangerous downward slid to extinction.

Many programs have become dedicated to re-introducing the swift fox back into its natural homeland. "In the fall of 2003, biologists began transplanting wild swift foxes from Colorado into the national park and the surrounding Buffalo Gap National Grasslands. Led by park biologists Greg Schroeder and Doug Albertson,