MOROCCO, Ind. — Justin Moore and I tried sneaking through Efroymson Prairie hoping to see a Franklin’s ground squirrel above ground. No luck at first Monday at Kankakee Sands. Then, as Moore wheeled the UTV near the next to last acclimation cage, we spotted one staring back. It hightailed it underground so fast I didn’t even get my phone up.
But I had seen my first Franklin’s ground squirrel, an unusual species far more individualistic than communal gophers.
Moore is leading a study of a reintroduction project of Franklin’s — state endangered in Indiana and state threatened in Illinois — at Kankakee Sands in collaboration with Purdue Fort Wayne, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and The Nature Conservancy. The Indiana chapter of TNC owns and manages Kankakee Sands, a good hour southeast of Chicago along Route 41 and noted for its large bison herd.
Stuff like this just fascinates me.
As it does Moore.
“I’ve always done wildlife research but I’ve always kind of been drawn to endangered species and especially lesser known ones that get a lot less attention,” he said. “Because they need the most help . . . they don’t have as much funding and there is still a lot less known about them.”
He started with work on piping plovers and other endangered species. Then Purdue Fort Wayne assistant professor of biology Scott Bergeson, Ph.D, and Indiana DNR mammalogist Brad Westrich came up with idea to collaborate with a grad student on Indiana’s endangered squirrel. Moore had a project.
I met him Monday before he started to open the acclimation cages so the squirrels could venture into their new world.
Acclimation cages are favored for introducing animals in a soft release rather than a hard release, where they are immediately released into a strange place. With acclimation cages, which include water, food and a built-in tunnel (black tubing), the squirrels survey and acclimate to their new homes for a week.
This is the second year of the introduction on hills, favored because of soil drainage and vegetation, near the bison viewing area. The squirrels come from South Dakota. In 2024, they came from Brown County. This year they came from Day and other counties. The object to establish a genetically diverse population.
One of Moore’s key research aims is resource selection analysis. Where do squirrels go after translocation and why? What area/habitat are they selecting? He studies that by comparing control areas with the areas the squirrels utilize, checking vegetation height, forbs, grasses and soil type.
He spends much summer time getting GPS points through an antenna and his “lunchbox receiver” to establish the areas each squirrel is using to compare/contrast with the control areas.
This year all the squirrels have VHF tracking collars, which last two years. Five had them last year. All the squirrels are fitted with PIT tags, so all released squirrels can be scanned if checked. Squirrels without PIT tags indicate being born there.
If he can establish what is the Franklin’s favored habitat, the Indiana DNR can try to establish populations in other areas. Illinois is also watching the study.
“The Kankakee Sands macro-site is a place to promote ecosystem biodiversity and function. The more puzzle pieces we can have in place that belong to the local ecology, the closer we can get to achieving those goals and hopefully provide a resilient future for this landscape,” emailed Trevor Edmonson, TNC’s northern Indiana stewardship lead. “Franklin’s ground squirrels have historically been here in Northwest Indiana. What once was fragmented is now much more connected. I feel it’s our responsibility as stewards to provide a canvas and opportunity for species to return.
“It has been a heartening experience to come together with strong partners to lean in and go for something big together. Conservation needs more of that, the species that depend on us for survival now do too.”
The advantage of starting with Kankakee Sands is its size (8,400 acres).
Moore considers three things to be signs of success: 1) The introduced squirrels make it to hibernation, roughly late September/early October to May. 2) No hyper dispersal. 3) Reproduction from last year.
So far, so good. The squirrels made it to hibernation last year, other than one preyed on by a badger. There was no signs of hyper dispersal and this spring at least four young squirrels were confirmed.
“Today is the first of the big days,” Moore said Monday as I left. “I’m truly excited.”
It was time.
In the past year, Kankakee Sands made major upgrades for visitors, including a pavilion and better viewing spaces at the bison viewing area. Information is at nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/places-we-protect/kankakee-sands/.