Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Vulpes Velox

I was surprised that this small Swift Fox didn't stay in its burrow today, considering how many noisy kids and their parents were at the Zoo. This was the first time I had seen this beautiful creature, despite all my visits to the Zoo. It was constantly on the move, making taking photos really difficult : ). I was delighted to finally see what a Swift Fox looked like. "The swift fox (Vulpes velox), is one of the smallest foxes in the world, and is only found in the Great Plains of North America. This fox is only about the size of a house cat, standing about 30 cm high and weighing about 2.7 kilograms. The swift fox gets its name because it can reach speeds of up to 40 km per hour. 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 Mexico. The swift fox is now endangered in 90% of its historical habitat range. The reasons for the disappearance of swift foxes in both Canada and the U.S. are uncertain, but strychnine-poisoning, intensive trapping (in the past), and habitat destruction are thought to be the primary causes. In 1973, a captive breeding program for swift foxes began in Cochrane, Alberta. The captive breeding program for these foxes, supported by Wildlife Preservation Trust of Canada (WPTC), has been very successful. With a well-established breeding program, swift fox releases began in 1983. The Swift Fox Recovery Team decided to begin in southern Alberta and Saskatchewan in an effort to reintroduce this species to its native Canadian habitat." From www.thewildones.org/Animals/swiftFox .

This beautiful little, cat-sized, endangered Swift Fox resides at the Calgary Zoo. I was finally lucky enough to see it, after many Zoo visits. Constantly on the move while I was there, so almost impossible to photograph : ). As you might guess, this was not the composition I would have liked, but was what I got! "Historically, Swift Foxes were found throughout southern Alberta, ranging north to the 53rd parallel, west to the Foothills and Rocky Mountains, and east to the Saskatchewan border. A rapid decline in abundance occurred during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, with the last verified sighting of a Swift Fox in Alberta reported in 1938 near Manyberries. Beginning in 1983, Swift Foxes have been released in the Alberta/Saskatchewan border area as part of an intensive reintroduction program. In 1989, Swift Foxes were also released into the Milk River Ridge area in Alberta. Swift Fox populations have been established in the area bounded in the west by Manyberries, Alberta (48 kilometres from the Alberta- Saskatchewan border) and in the east by Consul, Saskatchewan (35 kilometres west of the Alberta-Saskatchewan border). The Milk River area has not been surveyed recently and it unlikely that a Swift Fox population continues to survive in the area." From www.abheritage.ca/abnature .