[News Today] Red foxes released into the wild

[LEAD]
Thirty endangered red foxes have been released into Sobaeksan Mountain.

With improved breeding techniques boosting their numbers, officials hope the foxes will help restore the ecosystem's balance.

[REPORT]
When the steel gate is opened, a red fox scans the unfamiliar environment before cautiously stepping out of the pen.

It was one of the thirty red foxes, a class 1 endangered wildlife species, released in Sobaeksan Mountain.

Red foxes were commonly spotted all over Korea until the 1970s.

But the red fox population drastically dipped in the wake of the rat eradication movement dedicated to reducing the number of rodents, as they are also the foxes' main prey.

The methods used to kill rats also caused secondary poisoning in foxes.

Hence, the government has been pushing to revive the red fox population since 2012.

Recent advances in related technology and methods led to the birth of thirty-three fox kits last year.

The thirty foxes released recently were mostly from that litter.

The Korea National Park Service expects the freed foxes to help balance out the ecosystem.

Bae Sung-geun / Nat'l Park Inst. for Wildlife Conservation
The fox is a mid-level predator crucial to the ecosystem. It helps control the number of various species including boars, not harmful to humans.

But the survival rate of released foxes is estimated to be under 50%.

In most cases, they fall victim to vehicular accidents, pesticides or illegally set traps.

The Korea National Park Service plans to attach tracking devices capable of locating them for up to three years and monitor them with unmanned cameras to see if they adapt well in the wild.