 |
CAPE WILDIFE CENTER ©2007
Two of the five red foxes rescued by the teenage girls, just before their release back to the wild. |
In April, two heroic teenage girls rescued a litter of five red fox infants. The teenagers' willingness to help and seek out professional assistance saved these young lives.
Rising Water
Upon discovering the five three-week-old cubs flooded out of their den, the two young ladies rescued the foxes without ever touching the animals. (Not only can handling wildlife be dangerous to humans, but a successful release back to the wild depends on minimal human contact.)
The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (Mass Wildlife) officials then transported the three male and two female foxes to our Cape Wildlife Center in Cape Cod for rehabilitation. Mass Wildlife officials and the center staff were concerned about the foxes developing pneumonia, but a complete physical indicated that the five siblings were all very healthy. The still-nursing cubs were just hungry.
Life-Skill Lessons
A primary caregiver at the Cape acted as the cubs' "mother," and within three weeks of their arrival, the youngsters began to nibble on solid food.
Once the foxes learned to eat on their own, the rehabilitation staff moved them to outdoor enclosures to exercise and grow. Fox cubs are independent at six months and usually stay with their family into the fall, moving out on their own before winter. Their rehabilitation plan mimicked what would have happened naturally, with their release timed to coincide with their normal dispersal time.
Rescue to Release a Triumph
When the cubs were ready for release, the rehabilitation staff coordinated logistics with Mass Wildlife officials, who designated an appropriate conservation habitat near their birth home. The release of the foxes into designated conservation land means they will have time to become familiar with their habitat prior to encountering the perils of road traffic, hunting, or the habitat destruction caused by development.
On a temperate day in September—with their two teen rescuers and their parents standing by to watch—the cubs were released. Months after saving the infant foxes from a flooding den, the teens watched as the juvenile foxes—now strong, independent and skilled enough to survive in the wild—struck off on their own to discover their new territory.
Related Stories
Posted February 7, 2008
