Successful use of neck snares to live-capture red foxes

Authors

S. Nicole Frey, Southern Utah University
Michael R. Conover, Utah State University
Gary Cook, Cache Valley Hunter Education Center

Date of this Version

2007

Comments

Published in Human-Wildlife Conflicts Volume 1, Number 1, Pages 21–23, Spring 2007. Published and copyright by the Jack H. Berryman Institute. http://www.berrymaninstitute.org/journal/index.html

Abstract

Box traps and ^foot-hold snares are common methods to live-c^apture study animals. However, these methods are frequent^ly ineffective due to factors such as weather constraints, food availabi^lity, and target an_imal behavior. Duri_ng a study of red fox (Vulpes vulpes) behavior, we examined the use of neck snares to live-trap study anima^ls. We m^odified the neck snare using swi^vel cam-locks, d^eer stops to minimize damage to the animal. Additionally, we utilized our knowledge of red-fox behavior to set traps in a way that would reduce trauma to the captured animals. We snared 21 red foxes during the 3-year study with only 2 fatal injuries. Sixteen of these animals were followed with radio-telemetry for 3 to 28 months. With the data we collected during the radio-telemetry, we calculated home ranges. Home range size estimates calculated during the first few months for each fox were not different than those collected during the rest of the season. Most of the estimated home ranges for these red foxes did not encompass the snare location, suggesting either avoidance of the trap location or that the foxes were caught while investigating the status of another territory. Because captured red foxes were active the evening immediately after capture and all captured females reared young that spring, we determined that neck snares did not greatly affect their behavior. Thus, this method is a successful alternative way to live-capture red foxes for radio-telemetry studies.