TURLOCK, Calif. — An endangered and oft-beloved furry creature that roams the Central Valley could soon be stripped of protections provided by the federal government.
That’s because funding for an animal conservation program housed at California State University Stanislaus was frozen in March.
Staff at the university’s Endangered Species Recovery Program told KVPR the freezing of over $450,000 could mean the end of the program, which was established in 1992 to protect and rescue endangered animals and plants across the region.
Perhaps most notably, the program has been conducting research and treating kit foxes in and around Kern County who are suffering from an infectious skin disease. Kit foxes are small — typically no larger than house cats — with large brown eyes and skinny snouts and legs. The foxes are commonly recognized in the area, and program director Jaime Rudd said many locals adore and appreciate them.
Kit foxes have been listed as endangered since 1967. Rudd estimates that between 3,000 to 5,000 remain in the Valley, only around 200 in Bakersfield, and the skin disease further threatens their recovery.
Rudd said, though, that work to strengthen the species could soon vanish. She was notified in March by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) that her program’s biggest source of funding for work on the kit foxes was frozen. The hold may be related to a funding freeze announced by the agency in February on all its conservation projects across the U.S. and abroad.
The funding freeze, compounded with a $13.6 million budget deficit incurred by the CSU Stanislaus campus at the start of the academic year, resulted in layoff notices to five of the program’s staff — which Rudd said is “pretty much all” of the employees in the task force. More than a dozen other staff members on campus were handed layoff notices as well.
Rudd told KVPR even if her department gets its funding back, it will be hard to retain employees who are specialized in certain conservation efforts.
“These folks are trained,” Rudd said. “They’re permitted to do the work that they do with federal and state permits. [In] the case of the San Joaquin kit fox, they're the only people permitted in the entire world that can do what they do and actually touch and handle these animals.”
Rudd said without the program, she could see foxes getting sicker without help of antibiotics, as well as other species going extinct.
She also believes it could leave scientists with limited resources, and they might be forced to abandon conservation efforts they can no longer devote their energy and time into.
“We find ourselves in a unique situation,” Rudd said. “For the first time, we're actually actively able to make decisions on what species continue to exist.”
Kit foxes are the ‘face of the San Joaquin Valley’
The Endangered Species Recovery Program’s mission has always been to rehabilitate animals and plants considered endangered so that they no longer need to be protected. But Rudd told KVPR among the most treasured by the public is the kit fox.
Kit foxes live throughout the San Joaquin Valley. And although they’ve been spotted in Merced, Coalinga and the Kettleman Hills, most of the funding coming into the program from the Fish and Wildlife Service is dedicated to protecting those in Bakersfield. There, Rudd said the program staff frequently serve kit foxes who are infected with a skin disease called “sarcoptic mange” that can be fatal if not treated.
The disease is caused by parasitic mites that secrete digestive enzymes that break down the skin on the animal. The enzymes cause hair loss, crusted skin, sores, and even behavioral changes. For instance, Rudd said some of the nocturnal foxes have been spotted wandering into classrooms or backyards during the day. The disease is also contagious, the mites able to hop from one animal to another.
Rudd said kit foxes are especially vulnerable to infection because of their preferred climate and mating patterns. Kit foxes are the only canine in the country to live in underground dens year-round – and they mate for life. Living in such tight quarters, Rudd said, can prove deadly for pups and mates of an infected animal.
Program staff work to treat the disease and also contain it in urban areas. For example, after receiving a call that a kit fox has been spotted, the team will catch the animals and treat them with antibiotics and other medicines before releasing them near where they were found. The group also provides education on the disease and advises how to protect domesticated dogs and other animals from infection.
Rudd told KVPR that the kit fox has become the “face of the San Joaquin Valley and desert” because of its high density in urban areas. Many people spot them near golf courses and on school campuses.
Because of their small bodies and adorable pups, she said locals admire rather than fear the foxes.
“People know about them and often they really do like them just because they're sweet little small animals,” Rudd said. “They really don't cause any problems. They sort of live life through avoidance.”
Rudd also said their presence is a strong reminder of the wildlife that could be lost if not conserved, including the other plants and animals the program looks after.
“They're definitely an animal, I think, that people especially in Bakersfield can see and understand that extinction is forever,” Rudd said.
Valley leaders help with program’s future
In early March, Rudd sent a letter to seven congressmen of both parties up and down the San Joaquin Valley advocating for continued funding.
In the letter, she explained that the funding had already been granted, and just needed to be disbursed over a three year period. She also urged them to act on what she sees as a vital service to the Central Valley.
The sudden freeze “has affected not just [Endangered Species Recovery Program], but numerous other projects throughout California's Central Valley,” Rudd wrote. “This widespread suspension threatens decades of progress made in balancing the needs of communities, agriculture, and wildlife.”
Rudd asked for a clear explanation on why the funding was suspended, information on when it will be reinstated, and a commitment to ensuring the safety of hers and other local conservation programs.
Since then, she’s been in contact with staff from Democratic Rep. Jim Costa’s office in Fresno.
“Jim Costa's office was the most responsive and also the one trying to work behind the scenes, sort of poking and prodding about what was going on,” Rudd said. “It's kind of shook some of the fruits loose from the tree.”
Spokesperson Anthony Camacho from Costa’s office confirmed they’ve been in communication with Rudd and have tried to provide support. Camacho also shared several letters Costa sent to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Environmental Protection Agency and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expressing concern and raising questions about layoffs and budget cuts.
Rudd told KVPR she thinks it’s now not a matter of “if” but “when” funding will be reinstated. If the money doesn’t return, she said the program will be “devastated.” Without staff, they will lose the chance to monitor, research and protect kit foxes, as well as keep an eye on other species like Riparian woodrats and blunt-nosed leopard lizards that they have protected for over 30 years.
When asked what losing the program could mean, Rudd paused in silence.
“Right now we're just all in survival mode and trying to take action, because we don't know what else to do, and sound the alarm because we hope that everybody recognizes the importance of the work that we do,” she said through tears.
Although the Trump Administration’s actions have been slowly dismantling wildlife conservation across the globe, Rudd said her work is not a matter of political beliefs.
“Bakersfield is a red district, but everybody there recognizes the importance of the work that's done, the importance of conservation and really just want to see the foxes thrive,” she said. “[They] become very upset when they see a sick animal.”
