Thursday, September 12, 2024

Island Foxes Teaching the Next Generation of Field Biologists

For the past two years, Friends of the Island Fox has had the honor of funding all of the new and refurbished fox tracking collars for Santa Cruz Island–but this summer, these collars were able to support more than just island fox monitoring and research.

 

As part of Paso Robles High School's Field Studies Collaborative program, a group of 25 students ranging in age from 15–18 spent a week on Santa Cruz Island, learning about its history and ecosystems. The program includes student presentations, expert workshops on a variety of topics, and field experience, like vegetation sampling and plant identification.

 

This past year, FIF board member Justin Purnell expanded the program to include trapping and working with island foxes, giving students an opportunity for hands-on experience working with the island's (very adorable) apex predator.

Justin isn't new to Paso High's program. Taking the class, during his junior year at Paso High, inspired his own path forward in wildlife biology. Since then, he has been a volunteer and chaperone on the trip, which is now in its 34th year.

 

The students (and other chaperones) were blown away by the experience of working with the island foxes. For many of the students, it was their first time seeing wildlife up close–and the impact cannot be overstated. Some were moved to tears and many of them expressed an interest in continuing their education in not only wildlife biology, but a host of other careers that support conservation.

Here are some of their reactions, in their own words:

  • "Working with those foxes was such an amazing experience and changed my life. I thought I had my future figured out, but seeing what Justin does on the island threw a wrench in my plans. Now I think I want to go to college and study forestry. I would never have looked into or even thought about this as my career path if I didn't go on this trip." - Hannah, 16
  • "It was hard to believe that doing something so special as a career could be more than a dream, but after getting to experience working with the foxes firsthand, I now know that doing work like this could be my reality." - Jordan, 17
  • "It was incredible to see the foxes close up and to be a small part of helping to preserve this endemic species. This is one of the coolest things I've ever gotten to do, and it really drove home for me the importance of preserving nature. I get emotional thinking about it! I am forever grateful for this experience." - Ava, 15
  • "When I was younger, I was absolutely obsessed with animals and was set on working with them as an adult. As I grew up, I lost faith that I would be able to have a stable career working with wildlife. Watching Justin work was super emotional because I felt that love and interest in wildlife return. This trip totally changed my plans for my future–I am now planning to go into wildlife conservation." - Divy, 17

 


These experiences, and the impacts that can ripple out from them, are the reason that we do this work. We are happy that our funding of the collars was able to help support this experience for Paso High's field studies program and are excited to find other ways to support both the island foxes and the next generation of wildlife conservationists. Article by Justin Purnell 

Tuesday, September 03, 2024

Island Fox F257 is Back and Beautiful at Middle Age

 

F257 August 2024

Channel Island National Park biologists are on Santa Rosa Island this week capturing island foxes, counting them, checking their health, and updating radio-tracking collars. Biologist Juliann Schamel contacted FIF with great news: Female island fox 257 was captured for the 5th year in a row and she's looking great! Here's Juliann's update:




F257 was born in 2019, and has spent her entire life in her natal area, which overlooks the East Point estuary [as] Santa Cruz Island floats on the horizon.  Every year since 2019, she has gone into traps at our long-term monitoring site at Old Ranch.  She has spent a total of 18 nights in our "island hotel."  Every year, she moves between Trap 1, Trap 11, and Trap 12, which are in a triangle 200 meters apart from each other.

F257 is five years old now, and remains in great health.  She has been monitored with VHF collars throughout her life, and is currently wearing her third collar.  She has Age Class 2 tooth wear.  As an adult, she has fluctuated in weight between 1.8–2.2 kilograms (4–4.9 pounds)
 
island fox whisker sample

This year, during her health check ... she also contributed samples to microbiome, leptospirosis, and stable isotope research (gut swab, urine, and whiskers).
 

In 2023, she had signs of nursing pups for the first time.  This year she does not show signs of having had pups.  (As pictured, her belly is white.) Data from our long-term monitoring sites has allowed us to document fox recovery to carrying capacity, which was reached in 2020. (What is carrying capacity?) 
 
Since then, the population has displayed density-dependent reproductive suppression (which I think is SO COOL!!!!) - very few pups were weaned in 2021, 2022, and 2023, adult survival remained high, and the total population has remained around 2,500.  Collecting long-term data during this time period has allowed us to document which adult females reproduce and which do not in this high-density landscape (how old are they? what habitat do they live in? how dense are the foxes in their local area?), which will provide further insight into what environmental factors influence fox biology, and how fox ecology in turn influences the landscape.  Old Ranch, where F257 lives, has a high density of adult foxes with high survival, and this area has not produced many pups in the past several years.  With the VHF collar, we will be able to monitor F257's health and status for years to come!

It's been so lovely to see F257 again! - Juliann Schamel


Schamel is not only a fox biologist out on the northern Channel Islands, she's also researching the complex interactions between island foxes and the landscape on Santa Rosa Island. 
 

Your Donations funded F257's radio collar and 
vaccinations for rabies and distemper!

Wednesday, August 07, 2024

FIF 2024 Trip To Santa Cruz Island

What do these smiling people have in common?

 


They joined Friends of the Island Fox on a trip to Santa Cruz Island

Join in the Fun and Experience Island Foxes in the Wild

 

Saturday, September 14, 2024

We'll check-in at Ventura Harbor at 8 am 

and return around 5 pm

The $78 registration fee includes: boat fare, FIF naturalist guides on the island, and a donation to support island fox conservation. 

Trip is Sold Out


 It's a full day of exploring Santa Cruz Island and each trip has unique experiences.

an island fox follows a raven

watching an island fox

 

 

The endemic island scrub jay is now easily seen in the Scorpion Landing area where we are headed. Late summer is also a great time to see marine mammals.


Reservations are taken on a first come basis. For more info follow the button...

Trip is Sold Out


 See island foxes, experience the Channel Islands, and support important conservation.


Friday, August 02, 2024

Fox Foto Friday - Island Foxes Being Counted

 


What's the word from the northern Channel Islands?

NPS biologist Juliann Schamel says the "season is going well so far, we just caught our 100th fox of the season yesterday!"

If you look closely, you can see the dark squared-off battery end of a radio collar beneath the chin of the captured island fox.

Friends of the Island Fox funded its 417th radio-tracking collar last month. New radio collars arrived for deployment on three islands!

Your donations provide radio collars to monitor island fox survival. Help Island Foxes

More about how biologists capture island foxes for health checks 

Tuesday, July 09, 2024

Radio Collars Arrive for Summer Health Checks!

You Did It!

 

These refurbished radio collars are being prepared for deployment during island fox health checks on San Miguel Island in the next few weeks.

The Channel Islands National Park fox biologists tie bright pink ribbons on radio collars and mark the ribbon with the collar's ID number and radio frequency. Pink makes it easy to find the collar in a dark backpack. The ribbon can quickly be removed and the information on it entered into field notes, after the island fox has been released.



 

Having the info on the ribbon helps the biologist minimize the time they spend physically in contact with the island fox.

 

Island foxes do not have to be tranquilized during health checks. Special muzzles that cover their eyes help to keep them calm. However, it is a priority that wild island foxes are handled only when necessary and for the shortest amount of time possible.

 

Donors like you funded:

  • 26 refurbished radio collars 
  • 20 new radio collars
  • and $1,036 in rabies vaccine (to vaccinate 650 island foxes)

that arrived this month for deployment across San Miguel, Santa Rosa, and Santa Cruz Islands. Rabies vaccinations will also protect Santa Catalina Island foxes.

Radio collars monitor island fox survival

More about island fox health checks



Friday, July 05, 2024

Fox Foto Friday - Island Foxes as Seed Dispersers


What do these year-old toyon lemonadeberry plants have in common?

They were grown from seeds found in island fox scat. 


FIF talks about island foxes eating native plant fruits and spreading the seeds across the islands, but now there is scientific evidence that this seed dispersal can help island plants.

Researchers Savannah Bartel and John Orrock from the Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, were investigating the role social status plays in vertebrate dispersal of seeds. They found that while passing through the digestive system of a fox or coyote didn't necessarily improve germination, being in carnivore scat provides seeds with protection. Rodents tend to avoid carnivore predators and their poop.

To do her own observations, Juliann Schamel, with Channel Island National Park, collected island fox scat with lemonadeberry seeds and attempted to grow them. And they grew! 

 

The plants are growing in an island nursery in collaboration with Michelle Gados and Kathryn McKeachern, who are working to restore Santa Rosa Island's unique cloud forest plant life.

Does passing through the island fox's digestive tract provide other benefits to seeds? More investigation is needed.

Island fox's eating toyon berries and other native fruits are providing seeds with a protective compost pile to grow in. 

toyon berries

Friday, June 28, 2024

Fox Foto Friday - Keeping Vaccines Cool

How are colorful cooler bags and ice packs helping island foxes?

 

Biologists at Channel Islands National Park will soon be heading out into the field to count island foxes and provide health checks. Part of that effort includes vaccinating island foxes and taking blood samples.

 
 
Vaccines need to be kept cool going out into the field and biological samples need to be kept cool coming back.

To maintain biosecurity for each island and reduce the opportunity for insects, viruses, parasites, or plant seeds to hitch a ride and move from one island to another, FIF has supplied the biologists with two cooler sets per island. Cooler packs dedicated to use on a specific island will help keep island foxes safe.

 

$1,036 of rabies vaccine is on its way to four islands for 650 island foxes. 

Your donations help protect island foxes.

Help FIF raise the additional $7,000 to pay for this year's canine distemper vaccine.

Friday, May 31, 2024

Island Fox Status Update 2024

In 2023, island fox populations remained healthy and stable across all six islands. Weather extremes, however, effected islands in different ways.

Island fox on San Clemente Island courtesy of J. Sanchez

The following is an update across the Channel Islands from notes compiled by Friends of the Island Fox at the Island Fox Conservation Working Group Meeting May 8, 2024 hosted at the Santa Barbara Zoo (hybrid meeting).

Reported population numbers are the official estimates submitted by the land managers and calculated by them from island foxes captured for health checks July–December 2023. (How island foxes are captured and given health checks)

Overview: Rainfall was abundant in 2023, but the impact on plant and prey species varied by island. Island fox populations on smaller islands grew, while island fox numbers on larger islands adjusted downward slightly. The anomaly was Santa Cruz Island, which appears to have experienced a significant population increase, creating a historic record for a single island population.


Range Size and Diet Research: Ongoing research by FIF Research Grant recipient Katie Elder revealed that fox home ranges on Santa Rosa Island have declined in size by 83% since 2009. It's not surprising that home range territories have gotten smaller as the fox population has recovered from less than 400 individuals to over 2,500. The surprise is how strictly the 15 male foxes monitored for a year with GPS collars stayed confined within their small territories. This means that individuals in poor habitats have less access to varied resources; inland foxes aren't accessing beach foods and individuals with grassland home ranges may have less access to fruiting plants. How will individual survival be challenged if drought conditions return?

Density: On the northern islands, island fox density has become high: 11.35–14 island foxes per square kilometer. What is island fox density? While it's great to see increased populations of island foxes, high density means individual fox territories are close together. Disease can be transmitted more easily through a dense population. As the Range Size research reveals, high population density may also mean island foxes have less flexibility to survive fluctuations in their available resources.  

Climate Impacts: For the first time, islands documented increased rainfall that did not coincide with island fox population growth. The timing of storms or extreme high levels of rain may have negatively impacted deer mouse or insect populations resulting in fewer resources for island foxes.    

In 2024, the leading threats to island foxes are:

  • biosecurity: the threat of introduced viruses, accidental transportation of a deadly parasitic worm from San Miguel Island to other islands, disease, and/or non-native animals
  • reduced funding for monitoring
  • climate change: extreme weather effects food resources, heightens parasites, challenges health, and can make it more difficult for biologists to access the islands

Greatest Concern: Biosecurity threats are heightened by the high density of island foxes on northern islands and rising tourism on Catalina Island. Canine distemper and other dog diseases remain threats. A new investigation has identified the parasitic spiny-headed worm on San Miguel Island that has caused fox fatalities in the past, especially in drought years. The investigation to find the prey species that acts as an intermediary host continues. New findings reveal that this lethal intestinal parasite was most likely transported to the island by humans. It is vitally important that this parasite not be moved to other islands.

Be a BioSecurity Guardian–Clean, Check, and Close everything you take to the islands. Watch Biosecurity Video.


Smaller Islands

San Miguel and San Nicolas Islands appear to have equally benefited from additional moisture and available resources. Their populations grew at the same rate in 2023. San Clemente Island remained stable at its lower population size.

San Miguel Island (lime green line): While adult annual survival declined, healthy pups stabilized and increased the population. This island currently has the greatest island fox density: 14 foxes per square kilometer.

San Nicolas Island (pink line): General health remains good, but lifespan appears to be 7–8 years, rather than the 10–12 years on larger islands. Density remains moderate at 8.4 foxes per sq km. Dog flu has declined, but remains prevalent. Car strike causes the greatest island fox mortality and more days of foggy weather increased fox fatalities.

San Clemente Island (blue line): Adult island foxes on this island had a high 89% chance of surviving the year, but pup survival continues to be investigated. This island currently has the lowest fox density: 4.06 foxes per sq km. Approximately 5% of the population is lost annually to car strike and inexperienced young island foxes are more likely to be hit.

 


Larger Islands

The larger islands were all thought to have reached carrying capacity. Santa Catalina and Santa Rosa Islands adjusted downward at nearly the same small rate in this extremely wet year. Because their populations are so large, this adjustment is not unexpected. Santa Cruz Island, however, increased at the same high rate as the small islands, creating a historic population estimate.

Santa Catalina Island (red line): The population remained stable with a density of 9.22 foxes per sq km. Analysis of tick samples collected from island foxes from 2019–2022 showed no tick-borne disease. This is important because 60% of Catalina Island foxes carry ticks. Both dog flu and corona virus declined in 2023, but biosecurity remains a huge concern on this island. From car strike and dog attack to foxes being drown in scuba wash tanks and entrapped in human structures, humans and pets currently pose the greatest threat to island foxes. In 2023, over 62% of known fox fatalities were human caused.

Santa Rosa Island (pink line with black centers): This population remains stable with a high density of 11.35 foxes per sq km and adults had an 89.5% chance of surviving the year. Research is showing that Rosa foxes are becoming dietary specialists. How will this impact individual foxes and the island ecosystem?

Santa Cruz Island (black line): With an adult annual survival rate of 94.7%, this island was estimated to have a historic population size of 4,057. The fox density is currently 12.9 foxes per sq km. Due to a record 35 inches of rain, foxes could not be counted in some of the traditional grid locations. There is a possibility that the high population calculation may be slightly inflated by data fluctuations.

Weather has a profound effect on island resources. Changing weather patterns–tropical summer storms, extreme winter rainfall, increased summer heat, denser fog–all impact island habitats and island foxes. 

Your donations help monitor island fox survival with radio collars and provide vaccinations to protect them from introduced disease. Research is investigating health, behavior, and how best to support stable island fox populations in a changing world.

Healthy island fox populations depend on people like you supporting conservation efforts. 


 


Thursday, May 16, 2024

What is Island Fox Density?

 

Density is a term used in biology to express the number of individual living things in a given area. Biologists use a defined area size–ie. a square meter, square kilometer or square hectare–to quantify density. 

A square kilometer is equivalent to the footprint of Disneyland in southern California and a square hectare is equivalent to a professional baseball field.

Understanding how many island foxes are living in a square kilometer is part of the calculation for estimating the size of an island-wide population.

At the recent Island Fox Conservation Working Group Meeting, land managers reported on the island fox density for their islands. There was a noticeable difference between northern and southern islands.

Northern islands are reporting considerably higher island fox density. The causes for this are not completely clear. Northern islands may benefit from less extreme weather–higher average rainfall and more moderate summer temperatures–which support diverse prey and plant food for island foxes. Northern islands also have fewer impacts from humans; Catalina Island and the two Navy islands, San Clemente and San Miguel, have roads and cars that cause the highest percentage of fatalities for island foxes. 


High density, however, can have a downside. Catalina Island has been stable for the past 10 years with a density around 9 foxes per sq km. The island with the highest density in 2023–14 foxes per sq km–was also the smallest, San Miguel Island. When density increases, individual island fox territory decreases. A smaller territory means a smaller area to find food. High density can push some individuals into habitats with fewer quality resources. San Miguel's resources are less diverse than the larger islands and there are fewer options for foxes when drought or other weather extremes occur.

 

When island foxes are living closer to each other, the possibility of disease moving rapidly through a population also becomes heightened. Parasites can spread more easily.

Understanding population density is important for calculating risks to populations and making informed conservation decisions. 

Friday, May 10, 2024

Date With A Fox - Island Fox Research with Juliann Schamel and Dr. Alexandria DeCandia

Friends of the Island Fox's Virtual Program on current island fox research.

"Date With A Fox"

with guests Juliann Schamel and Dr. Alexandra DeCandia

from Tuesday, April 30th

The April program highlighted current findings on island fox diet and microbiome. Microbiome investigations can help us understand how island foxes and island spotted skunks are using resources in the island ecosystem. Dietary investigations analyzing stable isotopes in whisker samples are revealing changes in island fox diet as their population size recovers and potential resource competition with island spotted skunks. 

Both research presenters are past recipients of Friends of the Island Fox Research Grants.

 



 

 

Dr. Alexandra DeCandia is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Biology Dept. at Georgetown University and works with the Center for Conservation Genomics at the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Her work has been published in Molecular Ecology and she is currently working on a joint project with Juliann Schamel supported by Friends of the Island Fox.

 

Juliann Schamel is a Biological Science Technician working with island foxes at Channel Islands National Park and a graduate student in ecology and conservation at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. Her work has been published in PLOS ONE and she presented a poster on island fox and island spotted skunk dietary overlap at the California Island Symposium. 

Informed conservation decisions for island foxes and island spotted skunks depend on scientific knowledge.


Friends of the Island Fox is currently 

accepting applications for our 2024 FIF Research Grant.


Subscribe to the FIF bi-monthly e-newsletter for invitations to upcoming "Date with a Fox" presentations.

Friday, April 12, 2024

Are Grapes Toxic to Island Foxes and Gray Foxes?


Recently, this question was posed to Friends of the Island Fox by a wildlife sanctuary that cares for gray foxes. Because gray foxes are wide-spread and considered common, little scientific research has evaluated their daily behavior, including diet. Island foxes, however, have been through periods of captive breeding when they faced near-extinction and there is a growing library of research on their diet and health.

Since island foxes are recently descended from gray foxes, it stands to reason that the two species would have similar responses to toxins. We reached out to the veterinarian members of the Island Fox Working Group and discovered there is no authoritative answer.

Tartaric acid in grapes can be toxic to domestic dogs, damaging kidney function. Since island foxes and gray foxes are part of the canine family it's reasonable to extrapolate that grapes could be toxic to foxes as well. Inquiries to toxicologists and a range of references uncovered no reputable sources that confirmed or denied that grapes are toxic to foxes (or any wild canid). "In the absence of evidence," says wildlife veterinarian and FIF Board member Jessica Sanchez, "it seems reasonable to err on the side of assuming things toxic to dogs will be toxic to foxes." Therefore, grapes, cocoa, and coffee are all substances that should be kept away from gray foxes and island foxes.

island fox in a fig tree
 

Do wild gray foxes sometimes eat grapes? Yes, one scientific paper, from the last century, reported wild grapes were found in 9.5% of gray fox stomachs. What is unknown is the comparative level of tartaric acid between wild and domestic grapes and whether or not eating grapes impaired kidney function in the wild foxes.

 

Ironically, in classical Greek and Roman literature, foxes were depicted as raiding vineyards to eat grapes. In Aesop's fables, a fox's craving for sweet grapes turns to disdain when his goal becomes unreachable. Aesop's fox, however, is a red fox and not a close relative of the gray fox and the island fox.

gray fox in a Camarillo backyard
 

Still, there are anecdotes in Lyndal Laughrin's 1980 paper "Populations and Status of the Island Fox" that recount how the number of island foxes on Santa Cruz Island in 1918 was so great, they "were destroying the grapes in the vineyards." Whether or not the foxes fared well after consuming the grapes, is not reported.

toyon berries are eaten by island foxes
 

Gray foxes and island foxes are omnivorous. Native fruit can make up more than 50% of an island fox's diet. How do island foxes process toxins found in some of the fruit they eat? Answering these questions for island foxes would also help us understand gray foxes better, and maybe other canines, too.

Friends of the Island Fox supports island fox research

Applications for the FIF 2024 Research Grant 

will be accepted through June 30, 2024  

(Thank you to J. Sanchez DVM and J. Barnes DVM for their investigation of this question.)

Friday, March 29, 2024

Fox Foto Friday - Injured Island Fox Back on Her Feet


This young female island fox was discovered during capturing of island foxes for counting and health checks with a broken rear leg. Her story is one of multiple agencies, institutions, and a community of people working together to help her survive.

Friends of the Island Fox and donors like you helped raise the $1,900 to pay for her specialized orthopedic surgery. Following her orthopedic evaluation on March 15, Julie Barnes, V.P. of Animal Care and Health at the Santa Barbara Zoo, reported that "the fracture is healing really well and no longer needs bandaging." 

March 28th and she is standing solidly on all four legs!


All island foxes are under the jurisdiction of the California Dept. of Fish & Wildlife (CDFW). Removing an individual from its island habitat is a major decision because once an island fox comes off of its island of origin, it can not be returned. Because island foxes evolved in isolation on the Channel Islands, they are very susceptible to diseases from the mainland. Canine distemper virus is lethal to them and nearly caused extinction on Catalina Island in 1998. Today, a minimum of 100 island foxes are vaccinated against distemper on each island annually. (Help FIF vaccinate foxes)


To protect the wild population, the injured female island fox can not return to San Nicholas Island. The CDFW has approved The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in Palm Springs as her new home. The Living Desert is an American Zoo Association accredited zoo and has cared for other island foxes in the past. She will be moving to her new home March 30th.

Currently, there are six (Update 5/23/24 - five) island foxes living in zoos on the mainland. The CDFW requires that each facility only have males or females, since no island foxes can be bred on the mainland for release on the islands.

If you can't travel to the Channel Islands, you can see island foxes at:


The Santa Barbara Zoo

Brothers, Lewis and Clark, were left abandoned pups after their mother was hit by a car on San Clemente Island. The Santa Barbara Zoo leads the zoo community's efforts toward island foxes and hosts the annual Island Fox Conservation Working Group Meeting. (Update: Clark passed away at 8 years old on May 17, 2024, Lewis remains healthy and on exhibit.)

California Living Museum, Bakersfield

Two sisters, from San Clemente Island, were abandoned by their parents as pups during a drought year. They were in an enclosure with a female gray fox. The only place where you can see these two species side-by-side. (Update: one sister passed away in 2023.)

The San Diego Zoo Safari Park
Is home to Sage, a female island fox from Catalina Island, who was separated from her parents by people as a pup, resulting in chronic health issues. She was unable to be released back into the wild and requires regular veterinary care. 



The little San Nicolas Island fox joins her five cousins as ambassadors for their wild relatives. They tell a story of how human actions can be detrimental or positive for island foxes.

The San Nicolas Island fox has a second chance because people like you came to her aid.