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| courtesy National Park Service |
Some heroes are the biologists and technicians that work in the field across the six Channel Islands. They count the island foxes in the wild, provide health checks and are the first line of defense protecting island foxes. Fox Biologists.
Some heroes are school children like Hannah H. and her third grade class from Montecito Union Elementary School. Hannah told her school mates about the endangered island fox and made a Fox Box to collect donations. The students from Montecito Union raised enough funds to provide a radio tracking collar for a wild island fox. Radio collars provide the second line of defense for this endangered species. (More About Radio Collars) The goal across the islands is to annually have 60-70 individual foxes on each island wearing radio collars.Vaccinations for distemper and rabies are also vital to protecting endangered island foxes. When Friends of the Island Fox gave presentations to the second- and third-grade students at Poinsettia Elementary School, student Shawn D. realized he could make a positive difference for this local animal. Shawn saved up his allowance to vaccinate an island fox. Vaccinations for island foxes.
2011 has been filled with heroes:
- Students at Canalino Elementary School developed their own plan to fund an island fox radio collar. Island Fox Ambassador School.
- Local restaurant Native Foods Cafe donated a percentage of a day’s sales.
- Three California zoos provided grant money (Fresno Chaffee Zoo) and education opportunities
- KLOS radio personality Cynthia Fox interviewed Friends of the Island Fox on the air and sponsored a radio collar
A huge thank you to all of our Channel Island Fox Heroes. This year you helped the endangered island fox move ever closer to recovery. (Current Population Update)
Island fox pairs are coming together across the islands. Follow Tani, the young female island fox, on twitter or facebook as she settles into her own territory and finds a mate.