Endangered Vancouver Island marmots are making a comeback thanks to a little help from some human friends.
Four marmots have been released into the wild at Mount Washington, near Courtenay.
More are expected to follow throughout the summer.
In 2003, their population had dropped to fewer than 30 in the wild, but thanks to a breeding program, more than 400 are now emerging from hibernation.
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That is the highest recorded number in the past 40 years.
“So we have 40 marmots that we are releasing from the conservation breeding program this summer and another 13 marmots that we are translocating,” Adam Taylor, executive director with the Marmot Recovery Foundation, said.
“So the marmots that we are releasing today at Mount Washington, we’ll actually come back next year and try and trap them and we’ll move them into more remote colonies that are struggling a little bit more.”
Marmots remain a critically endangered species.
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