Why are these biologists smiling? Because you are helping island foxes.
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| Mike Watling (FIF) presents funds to Lara Brenner (CIC) and Laura Shaskey (CINP) |
At the annual meeting of the Island Fox Conservation Working Group, Mike Watling, a member of the Friends of the Island Fox Advisory Committee, presented FIF donations to support important investigations into the health of island foxes.
$3,000 to the Fox Program at Catalina Island Conservancy
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| tick attached to fox lower eyelid |
This funding will test a second year of tick samples to determine the threat to island foxes from Lyme disease introduced to several islands in 2018. More on tick-borne disease testing.
It also represents support from a Fresno Chaffee Zoo Wildlife Conservation grant that will analyze blood samples from island foxes on Catalina for signs of introduced disease. Once again a stow-away raccoon was recently stopped before hopping from a private boat to Catalina Island. Introduction of new diseases via pets and transported wildlife continue to be a problem for all islands, but especially Catalina. In 2018, blood samples revealed for the first time that a small number of Catalina Island foxes were exposed to a form of canine herpes virus. This important testing also detected exposure to a common dog illness, Coronavirus. 30% of the tested island foxes had been exposed to Coronavirus. Fortunately, no island foxes are known to have died from this disease.
$2,000 to the Fox Program at Channel Islands National Park
Intestinal parasites are causing early deaths among island foxes
on San Miguel Island. This funding is part of a multi-pronged
investigation to understand why and how new parasites are plaguing foxes
on this island and why well-known parasites are causing greater impacts
on San Miguel Island foxes. (see other ways FIF is helping this investigation)
your donations go right to work helping island foxes.
