Vaccinating Island Foxes Takes a Community

 $15,322 of vaccine is headed into the field to protect island foxes!

Donors like you made this possible! 

courtesy M. Navarro, NPS

Why do island foxes need to be vaccinated annually?

Canine distemper virus (CDV) caused a catastrophic decline of Santa Catalina Island foxes 26 years ago. Evolving in isolation on their islands, island foxes haven't developed immunity to typical canine diseases. To protect populations, each year at least 100 island foxes are vaccinated on each island against this deadly dog disease and rabies. On Catalina the goal is to vaccinate 350 island foxes, because the threat of introduced disease is so much higher for this population.

Island foxes are so susceptible to CDV that they can not tolerate the vaccine commonly given to dogs. They must be vaccinated with a special dead-virus vaccine that is produced in small batches and only provides protection for less than a year.

That means island foxes need to be vaccinated annually and the effort is one of the more expensive measures taken to protect their health each year.

This year's 650 vaccinations were supported by:

• Island Fox Ambassador Schools & Projects
• Local organizations 
• Recycling 4 Island Foxes & the Planet
• USU Recycles 4 Island Foxes
• 2024 FIF Island Trip participants 
• Private donors
• a grant from the Fresno Chaffee Zoo Wildlife Conservation Fund

How do you vaccinate an island fox? 

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.

Radio Collars and Vaccines Arrive for Island Foxes

Island fox populations are stable across the Channel Islands, but recovery is only as sustainable as our participation in protecting them from introduced threats.

Radio Monitoring

Radio-tracking collars remain the best technology for monitoring island fox survival. These collars allow biologists to determine from a distance that an island fox is alive and active in its habitat. If something happens to a fox and it stops moving for 6 hrs, the radio collar signal changes, alerting biologists that something has happened to that individual island fox. Quick response to the death of a collared fox allows new diseases or other threats to be discovered early–protecting the rest of the uncollared population. 

New and refurbished radio collars have just arrived.

• 5 new and 15 refurbished radio collars for Santa Cruz Island
• 24 refurbished radio collars for Santa Rosa and San Miguel Islands

44 radio collars will be fitted on island foxes over the next few months. They were funded through:

• combining small donations - 18 collars
  
• Island Fox Ambassador project - 1 collar
  
• "Cassidy Runs for Foxes" - 4 collars
  
• radio collar sponsorships (private individuals and Pomona Valley Audubon) - 13 collars
  
• Riverbanks Zoo & Garden grant - 2 collars
  
• Fresno Chaffee Zoo Wildlife Conservation Grant - 6 collars
  

 

Vaccinations Against Distemper and Rabies

Despite vaccine price increases, you helped FIF raise the $13,571 needed to vaccinate 650 island foxes in 2023.

Vaccine for rabies and canine distemper has gone out to Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, San Miguel, and Catalina Islands. On the three northern islands, 100 foxes will be vaccinated during health checks, while 350 island foxes will be vaccinated on Catalina. Why are more foxes vaccinated on Catalina?

It takes a community to vaccinate island foxes:

• Private donors, big and small 
• Camarillo Neighborhood Recycling project
• FIF 2023 Island Trip Participants
• Channel Islands Maritime Museum "Scent of the Islands" candle sales
• Fresno Chaffee Zoo Wildlife Conservation Grant & special year-end grant
• Riverbanks Zoo & Garden grant

Every donation makes a difference for island fox survival.

 

Supporting Island Fox Health Across the Channel Islands

 Every donation makes a difference!

FIF presents support for island fox disease testing

At the Island Fox Conservation Working Meeting on May 20th, 

FIF not only celebrated 

 

...your donations went to work!

FIF President Mike Watling presented Makenzie Henk, Wildlife Conservation Manager for the Catalina Island Conservancy with $4,100 to support testing island foxes for virus exposure. Catalina Island foxes face the greatest threat from introduced disease. Blood samples from Catalina Island foxes are tested for five viruses. More about this testing and health checks. Interview with Henk and CIC thanks Friends of the Island Fox.

Friends of the Island Fox also funded $4,540 in canine distemper and rabies vaccine to protect island foxes within Channel Islands National Park on San Miguel, Santa Rosa, and the southern tip of Santa Cruz Island. Canine distemper virus is lethal to island foxes and vaccination protects them for almost a year. 

Island foxes across the Channel Islands will be receiving vaccinations as population counting and health checks take place between June and early December. Vaccine will be going out to other islands soon. 

Your donations will help FIF provide 

nearly $13,000 worth of vaccine in the next few months

Friends of the Island Fox Vaccinates Island Foxes

You're making a HUGE difference for island foxes this summer.

Biosecurity is a major concern across the Channel Islands. Disease, especially viruses, can be introduced through unvaccinated pets, people, and wildlife species that are not native to the islands.

The island foxes on Catalina Island face the greatest potential biosecurity threat because their home is visited by millions of people

Friends of the Island Fox just purchased over $5,100 worth of vaccines to vaccinate 350 Catalina Island foxes this summer. Island foxes captured for health checks will receive two vaccinations:

• Canine distemper virus: It's the equivalent of measles in humans. This virus is highly lethal to island foxes and killed over 90% of the Catalina Island fox population between 1998–2000. Even with a great deal of human assistance, it took until 2016 for the population to recover.
  
• Rabies virus: Rabies is lethal to island foxes and dangerous to humans. Just like with dogs, the best protection is prevention.  
  

 

It costs $20 to vaccinate and protect an island fox.

Make A Difference 

Your donations help island foxes

This vaccine effort was funded by donors and a grant from the Fresno Chaffee Zoo Wildlife Conservation Fund.

Biosecurity measures you can take when traveling to the islands

WATCH VIDEO