May 2012

* Granted $5,250 for a Grey Fox on Pelee Island study

Project objectives:

In partnership with Trent University and the MNRF, the goal of this project was to acquire information about the Grey Fox population on Pelee Island to support the conservation of the species. The population on Pelee Island is of particular interest as it is the only known breeding population in Ontario.

2014 progress report:  Motion sensor cameras and hair snares were deployed at 30 sites around the island. All sites are on conservation lands. Ten cameras were rotated through these sites on a monthly basis. The data acquired has helped determine the presence, habitat use and identity of individual foxes. Ultimately, this information will be used to aid in the conservation of grey fox in Canada. All activities were completed as planned. However, grey foxes showed very little interest in the bait. As a result, almost no grey hair samples were collected. Through the analysis we will be able to quantify population size and habitat use. We hope this will lead to future studies of this species.