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Drones to drop M&Ms on endangered ferrets

Now there’s a headline that you don’t see every day.

What do you do when you have to save critically endangered ferrets, but the little buggers are hard to reach? You use drones to drop medicine on them.

Black-footed ferrets in the American Plains have been considered one of North America’s rarest mammals since the 60s, and now the remaining 300 little guys are suffering from a plague epidemic.

So in order to deliver a vaccine to them, the US Fish and Wildlife (FWS) Service will enlist the help of drones to drop vaccine-laced M&Ms on them in their habitat in Montana.

It has also been suggested that all-terrain vehicles (ATV) be used, but it is a laborious act that requires a lot of man-power. The use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) will allow the FWS to cover a wider area more effectively.

“The UAS will be pre-programmed to fly transects 3-30 meters above ground level and drop baits in a pattern that results in uniform distribution at a rate of 50 baits per acre,” the FWS explained.

But why M&Ms? Well, according to Randy Machett, a FWS biologist, ferrets find the candy “delicious”, and for the treatment the sweets will be smeared in vaccine-laden peanut butter.

“It is the fastest, cheapest way to distribute the vaccine. We are hopeful this oral vaccine will be used to mitigate plague sites and treat tens of thousands of acres each year. This is what the Endangered Species Act is all about – saving species, particularly those affected by human actions,” said Machett.

He also explained that the UAS is the most effective, as it can deliver the vaccine to a large area, instead of one area getting all the treatment.

“Spraying burrows with insecticide to kill the fleas is also labor intensive and not a long-term solution. So we are working with private contractors to develop equipment to drop the vaccine uniformly across an area, rather than one hog getting to eat a big pile of them.”

But the use of UAS isn’t the final word though, as the plan still needs to be approved by the FWS – but Machett is hopeful that they will be able to start dropping the vaccine on 1 September.

[Via – The Guardian]

 

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