Vancouver Island Marmot Program

Marmota vancouverensis

History of the Vancouver Island Marmot Program

In 1998 the B.C. Ministry of the Environment enlisted a group of scientists and wildlife managers from government, industry and non-governmental organizations to develop and implement a recovery plan for the rare Vancouver Island Marmot. At that time, there were only 20 marmots left in the Central Core forests of Vancouver Island. The first facility to begin a breeding program was the Toronto Zoo followed closely by the Calgary Zoo.

In 2000, Mountain View Conservation & Breeding Centre joined the recovery program and the Mount Washington Facility was completed in 2002. The Recovery Team works in partnership with scientists, researchers and technicians from across the country and around the world, to understand the marmot population and build animal management programs that support the recovery objectives. At Mountain View, marmots live in spacious pens designed to promote natural behavior such as breeding, burrowing, hibernating, and basking in the sun. Marmots spend the summer fattening up for the winter months when they will hibernate. In the wild they hibernate for eight months. In captivity they typically hibernate for a shorter period of five to six months.

The Recovery Program Team meets twice a year to review the recovery strategy and action plans for the coming year. The 15-20 participants attending are farmland owners, forest industry, B.C. government and the Marmot Recovery Foundation, as well as representatives from the various breeding centers, including Mountain View Conservation, the Calgary Zoo, and the Toronto Zoo. The Team reviews the various work in the field including updates on the wild population, release updates, survival rate and mating. In addition, the various facilities update the status of the Captive Breeding program, in terms of the number of litters and pups born in the past year and the scheduling of animals for relocation to Mount Washington in preparation for release the following spring.

Mountain View Conservation was co-awarded the B.C. Gold Conservation Award for our work in saving this species. Since the year 2000, Mountain View has assisted the Marmot Recovery Team to successfully rebuild the population from less than 30 to over 300 in the wild and the work continues to bring back these mammals from near extinction.
Mountain View Conservation celebrates that over 110 pups have been born here at our natural habitat facility in the Township of Langley B.C. Most of them have been returned to thier natural habitats on Vancouver Island.

Vancouver Island Marmots are considered to be one of the most endangered species of mammal in North America. They are native only to Vancouver Island and reside on mountains within the central range on the island. Mount Washington, north of Nanaimo, has a large facility that serves as a breeding centre and holding facility for animals prior to their release.

Mountain View sent 4 marmots to the Mt. Washington facility in 2006 for release. In 2007, we sent 7 marmots to the facility and 37 marmots where released in subalpine meadows. Two new sites further north saw marmots for the first time in decades, as the team released marmots in Strathcona Provincial Park and Mount Cain. To date, Mount Cain is now the most northern site with marmots.

At Mountain View, marmots live in spacious natural pens designed to promote natural behavior such as breeding, burrowing, hibernating, and basking in the sun. Marmots spend the summer fattening up for the winter months when they hibernate. In the wild they hibernate for eight months. In captivity, they typically hibernate for a shorter period of five to six months.

We believe that one of the keys to Mountain View’s success with breeding was building an outdoor marmot enclosure that allowed a breeding pair to burrow and nest underground. Our marmot facility is located in a secluded wooded area of the Centre, away from other animals and visitors, to ensure the health and privacy of the animals.

Mountain View’s breeding facility has been involved in research studies in the areas of marmot reproduction and self-preservation. Our facility is known in the marmot breeding business as the ‘Marmot Hilton’ – a testament to the success in breeding these remarkable little rodents.

PREDATION

One of the key threats to the wild population is predation. The marmots are hunted by golden eagles, cougars and wolves. One particular female golden eagle near a marmot colony was captured and relocated last spring. By the end of the season, the team reported less eagle predation over the summer. Another small success for the Recovery Team.

RELEASE LOCATIONS

Map provided by: Andrew Bryant, research scientist on the Marmot Recovery Team. To be provided soon!

Mount Washington has the largest housing facility with 89 marmots at this time. Because this location is at a higher elevation more indicative of the sub-alpine meadows that the marmots call home, animals are housed here so they can acclimatize prior to release. Typically marmots scheduled for release spend at least 10 months at this location before release. In 2007, 2 new sites further north on Vancouver Island were established for release, Strathcona Provincial Park and Mount Cain. These sites had no marmots left, so introduction here is a great step forward. The other colonies are located mainly in the south, just west of Nanaimo.

Photo: Checking their health, taking blood, inserting micro chips; are all done under anesthetic to keep our furry friends calm.

MOUNTAIN VIEW MARMOT FIRSTS

• The first male/female pair to breed in the wild came from Mountain View.
• The first male to breed with a wild female came from Mountain View.
• The first female to breed with a wild male came from Mountain View.

Mountain View sent 4 marmots to the Mt. Washington facility in 2006 for release. In 2007, we sent 7 marmots to the facility and 37 marmots where released in subalpine meadows. Two new sites further north saw marmots for the first time in decades, as the team released marmots in Strathcona Provincial Park and Mount Cain. To date, Mount Cain is now the most northern site with marmots.

2007 The Marmot Recovery Program continues to succeed. There are currently about 90 marmots in the wild with 37 released this year. As well, there are 162 in captivity. 2007 saw 59 new pups born in the breeding facilities, a record high. At Mountain View we are very pleased with the program we are running. Nineteen adults awoke from hibernation in late March and all were in good health. Three breeding pairs produced eleven marmot pups in May, almost twice as many as in 2006. This fall we sent six pups to the Mount Washington facility on Vancouver Island in preparation for their final release to the wild in the summer of 2008.

The remaining five pups will stay at Mountain View to be paired for breeding in the coming years. Five new adults, 3 females and 2 males arrived from Mount Washington and Toronto, to be paired with our single adult marmots. The new marmots must be in quarantine for 30 days after arrival. Introduction to their new mates is not done late in the fall as it may delay the onset of hibernation. Two pairs have already been introduced this fall. The other 3 pairs will awaken to their new mates in the spring.

Marmots at Mountain View are fed pellets, leaf-eater biscuits that are high in nutrients as well as fresh produce such as carrots, yams, broccoli and spinach. They eat the most in late August as they prepare for hibernation. From 20 animals in the wild in 1998 to approximately 90 in 2007 plus another 162 in captivity, we are making a difference in re-establishing this little rodent.

The Mountain View Marmot Recovery Team
In Mid July 2008 During a trip to Mount Washington for an annual Captive Management Meeting, the Vancouver Island Marmot Field crew wanted to give us a treat. So we, the captive breeding members, had a rare opportunity to observe Vancouver Island Marmots in the wild.

As we hiked up through the forest and broke into the meadow clearing, we heard a unique marmot vocalization. A nervous mother was calling to her pups and trying to gather her litter together. Within a minute’s hike we had a breathtaking view of the meadow, Haley Lake and the surrounding mountain sites, on which a handful of marmots are living. Gradually, as we hiked above the meadow, we started spotting individual marmots in the distance. Although we work with marmots in captivity every day, some of us had never seen a marmot in the wild and these first few sightings were well worth the hike up.

As we sat down for lunch, a couple of marmots lay basking in the sun on the rocky outcrop below. Though we were quite far from their lookout stations, they still kept a vigilant eye on us. We each tried to spot a marmot before anyone else, but the field crew members have well-trained eyes and would always be the first to point one out. Once in awhile, a pup would poke its head up from a burrow and cautiously climb the boulder. Eventually, they grew calmer in our presence and two pups started boxing and wrestling, a very typical marmot behaviour.

Suddenly we spotted an agile marmot running straight down a vertical outcrop to our right. “That’s Susan,” explained Jerry, one of the field marmot biologists, as he used radio-telemetry to id the marmot. She had been checking out the other side of the mountain and was quickly returning to her pups.

Susan’s litter was one of three born at the site this season. Most importantly, these pups are second generation from captive-bred marmots, which is an exciting testament to the success of the captive breeding and reintroduction program. Haida (born here at Mountain View) and Onslo, both born in captivity were released to Mount Haleyas a pair in 2004. They have produced several offspring in the wild since then but this is their first year as grand-parents.

Finally and reluctantly, we gathered ourselves up and took one last glance at the basking marmots below, before hiking back out of the ecological reserve. The experience, however brief, was incredibly fulfilling. These were marmots that we had cared for day-in and day-out, constantly worrying over their health and well-being. Now they are proving to us that not only can they survive in the wild, they can hibernate, reproduce and raise pups that will also become successful parents. Although there is still much more work to be done to bring back an entire species from near extinction, our motivation has never been greater, because we know the Vancouver Island Marmot has a chance.

2010 – 2012: We will publish more updates about the Marmot Program very soon.

Please help us defray the costs of the Marmot program. We do not receive any direct funding from the BC Government. All costs, apart from Vet & Transportation costs, are paid for by the Mountain View Conservation Society. Your donated dollars will go to help us feed and maintain the Marmot Program at Mountain View Conservation.
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Click here to Donate: Adopt a Vancouver Island Marmot
 Thank you.
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WILD STATUS:
Endangered.

LIFE SPAN:
In the wild they live 5-8 years and in captivity they survive longer, 11-15 years.

WILD POPULATION:
In 2007 there were approximately 90 in the wild and about 180 in captive breeding.

DISTRIBUTION:
Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada in the northern part of the island on Mt. Washington; also a few small colonies in the southern area.

SIZE:
Females: 3.5-6kg. Males 4-7kg.

HABITAT:
Avalanche bowls, meadows at higher elevations. They like to burrow around rocks and fallen trees.

REPRODUCTION:
Typical litter is 3-4 pups but can be as few as 1 and as many as 7.

DIET:
Lupines, grasses, shrubs, flowering plants.

INTERESTING TIDBITS

• The pups stay with the family group until they are 2 years old.
• The Vancouver Island Marmot is the most social of the marmot family.
• One of the few mammals that truly hibernate from mid fall to early spring.
• Their greatest predator is the Bald Eagle and other raptors on Vancouver Island.

It wouldn’t be possible for Mountain View Conservation to continue its programs without your donations! Please continue to support this extremely important work. You can help now!
Click here to Donate: Adopt a Vancouver Island Marmot
Or, Click on the Canada Helps logo and donate securely online. You will recieve a Tax Receipt immediately.
Thank you!

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