About Us
Nature Lovers
A Coordinated Effort to Save a Great Lakes Native
Since 2009, our field conservation project has built one of the most detailed population datasets for the species anywhere in its range.
EMR SAFE is the successor to the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake Species Survival Plan (EMR SSP), reorganized under the AZA’s SAFE framework to expand the program’s reach and impact. Our work is guided by six core objectives spanning population monitoring, habitat protection, partner coordination, public outreach, and long-term funding support, carried out by a steering committee and a growing network of institutional partners across the Great Lakes region.
Some Cool Facts
Numbers Speak For Themselves…To Date
1,000+
Eastern Massasaugas Caught and Released
17
Years of Field Work
235
Participates in Annual Survey
Six Objectives Guide Everything We Do to Protect the Massasauga
Field Conservation
Since 2009, our team has surveyed the Eastern Massasauga population in Michigan, the state that holds the species’ healthiest known numbers. Working alongside Lincoln Park Zoo, Detroit Zoo, and the Edward Lowe Foundation, we’ve captured, examined, and released more than 1,000 individual snakes. Each survey adds to a dataset that helps researchers understand population size, survival, and reproduction across the massasauga’s range, giving conservation planners the evidence they need to act.
Partner Collaboration
EMR SAFE brings together more than 22 AZA-accredited zoos and wildlife agencies across Michigan, Ohio, and Ontario’s Ojibway Prairie. No single institution can reverse a species’ decline alone. By pooling expertise, funding, and fieldwork under one coordinated program, our partners are able to move faster and reach further than any one organization could on its own.