FIF Funds Important Health Investigations for Island Foxes

Why are these biologists smiling? Because you are helping island foxes.

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

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)  

When you donate to FIF 

your donations go right to work helping island foxes.

  

Make the Island Fox Your Sweetheart

This Valentine's Day

Won't you share your passion?

February through April, island fox pups will be born across the Channel Islands. Help give the 2018 pups the best chance of survival by supporting two important conservation projects.

Recycled radio-tracking collars: 
Good for foxes and the environment
Pups on San Miguel Island face serious challenges like drought and climate change. Young foxes are struggling to survive and adults are threatened by new parasites.

island fox with radio collar

You can help National Park biologists better protect the foxes by donating toward a radio-tracking collar. Radio collars help biologists respond quickly when foxes are in danger. By refurbishing previously used collars, we're also reducing costs for foxes and the environment. Each refurbished collar costs $220, a 33% savings over typical radio collar costs and keeps a used collar out of landfills.

This Valentine's Day, FIF has our hearts set on funding 15 radio collars!

Slow Down for Foxes!

Island foxes on Catalina face another serious danger: automobiles. One of the ways to alert drivers to the dangers of speeding in fox territory is through electronic signs that tell drivers they are going too fast. These signs have been shown to slow down traffic and reduce fox injuries and death.

A critical sign on Catalina needs replacing. For $3,000, we can repair the sign and put it back in service, saving more fox lives.

Two Ways to Share Your Passion

Donate Today

or by mail:
Friends of the Island Fox: 2390 C Las Posas Road, Suite #120, Camarillo CA 93010

Help create a better future for island foxes!

Give the Gift of Saving Island Foxes

Since 2005, you have helped Friends of the Island Fox fund more than $60,000 in conservation efforts to save the endangered island fox.

In 2014 donors funded our  

113th radio-tracking collar!

In addition, in 2014 FIF:

• Hosted the annual meeting of island fox biologists
• Funded blood tests looking for exposure to disease (serology)
• Supported the purchase of a scientific specimen refrigerator at a lab studying island fox health
• Funded vaccinations for rabies
• And funded identification microchips 

 

In the year 2000, four subspecies of island fox were facing imminent extinction. San Miguel and Santa Rosa Islands each only had 15 surviving individual island foxes. On all six islands combined there was a total of approximately 1,400 island foxes. 

In just fourteen years, island fox populations have returned to historic levels. The official population numbers from 2013 estimate over 5,700 island foxes across all of the islands.

Maintaining this successful recovery of the island fox means continued monitoring. Disease and introduced threats can quickly impact these rare island populations.

This holiday season give the gift of directly saving an endangered species.

• $10 microchips an island fox with lifetime identification
• $10 vaccinates an island fox for a year against rabies or distemper
• $25 funds an annual health check
• $100 supports public education and vital research
• $300 sponsors a radio-tracking collar to ensure the safety of island foxes

Donate through the "Island Fox Donation" box on the upper right hand side of the screen (the box with the smiling island fox).

Microchipping 500 Island Foxes

What is small and makes a BIG difference for endangered Channel Island foxes?

Microchips or Passive Identification Tags (PIT)

This summer you can help make a big difference for island foxes. With help from kids, friends, baseball fans and even a dog, Friends of the Island Fox has raised $2,500 for 250 microchips for island foxes on the northern islands that are part of Channel Islands National Park.

At the annual meeting of the Integrated Island Fox Recovery Team, FIF learned that 250 microchips are also needed to provide individual identification for young island foxes on Santa Catalina Island.

The biologists on Santa Catalina Island work hard to keep island foxes safe from a variety of threats:

• cars
• domestic dogs and cats
• injury from other island foxes
• fishing equipment
• motorcycles
• raccoons that bring disease from the mainland
• even fire

the tiny microchip goes under the skin

An identification microchip allows biologists to positively identify each individual island fox. 

As the number of island foxes on Santa Catalina stabilizes at approximately 1,500 individual animals, more resources are need to monitor their success.

For just $10 you can fund a microchip that will provide an island fox with lifelong identification. Use the PayPal button in the upper right corner to Donate Now.

Be part of the most successful recovery of an endangered species!

Protecting Island Foxes from Canine Distemper Virus

Island Foxes need your Help! As the endangered populations of Channel Island foxes on San Miguel, Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz and Santa Catalina Islands reach recovery levels, a threat to their survival looms–the introduction of disease.

In the late 1990s canine distemper virus almost wiped out the island foxes on Santa Catalina Island. This virus is related to the measles virus that impacts people and, like that disease vaccination, is the the best protection against it. Pet dogs are vaccinated against canine distemper virus because it is highly contagious and easily transferred from one animal to another either directly or indirectly. There is no known cure for distemper and it is lethal to a high percentage of animals that become infected. Other mammals can be impacted by distemper viruses as well–sea lions, most wild members of the dog family, lions, raccoons. It was a raccoon from the mainland that transported the deadly canine distemper virus to Catalina Island.
Canine distemper is in the news again. As of April 2012, canine distemper virus caused the death of a number of kit foxes in the Mojave Desert in conjunction with an area being developed for solar energy.

People provide pathways for disease to find its way to isolated locations, like the desert and the Channel Islands. The threat of canine distemper virus reoccurring on the Channel Islands is high. To protect Channel Island foxes it is vital that at least 100 island foxes are vaccinated each year on each island.

Island foxes can be easily vaccinated during the late summer population count and health checks. But each vaccination has a cost. The vaccination shot alone costs $10 per island fox.

Help us vaccinate 200 island foxes this Fall.

Friends of the Island Fox is trying to raise $2,000 to vaccinate 200 island foxes. You can play an important role in protecting the rare Channel Island fox. Every $10 dollars helps protect the future for island foxes.

Road Signs to Save Island Foxes

courtesy of Kevin Pease

Over the Holiday Season important donations came in to fund three “Watch for Foxes” road signs.  In the past few years cars have become the most common cause of death for island foxes. While the northern islands have few cars operated only by National Park and Nature Conservancy officials, Santa Catalina has a number of roads and a variety of people driving on them. The two Navy islands, San Clemente and San Nicolas, also have roads with fast-moving vehicles.

This autumn several island foxes lost their lives on Santa Catalina Island along the road from the airport into Avalon. These “Watch for Foxes” signs will help remind drivers to slow down and be especially vigilant when driving this section of road.

Because of the island fox’s small size, it can be hard to see before it darts onto a road. The fox’s mottled gray coloring with tinges of russet, provide amazing camouflage in island chaparral and grass.  Especially at twilight, even careful drivers can sometimes accidentally strike an island fox crossing the road. While female island foxes usually stay near their parent’s territory, young males may travel great distances looking for territories of their own. These adventuring teenage boys tend to be inexperienced and many have their lives cut short along dangerous roadsides.

Accidents can happen. Drivers on Santa Catalina, San Nicolas and San Clemente are reminded that it is important to report incidents where island foxes are believed to be hit by cars. Injured animals can not be helped if accidents are not reported and the body of an animal killed by a car may provide important medical information if the carcass is collected in a timely manner.

Hopefully with the new “Watch for Foxes” signs funded by donations to Friends of the Island Fox this Holiday Season, island foxes will be safer along island roads this spring. 

Friends of the Island Fox Joins Channel Islands Park Foundation

As we venture into 2011 Friends of the Island Fox is joining with the Channel Islands Park Foundation, the non-profit foundation that supports Channel Islands National Park. 

This new relationship will expand our ability to educate the local community about the endangered island fox and its connection with the Channel Island ecosystem. School programs will continue and grow to include additional island topics. We will continue to support conservation efforts and research across all six of the California islands that are home to the island fox. 

As we begin this New Year we thank all of the our island fox friends who have helped us fund our end-of-the-year conservation goals:

• a total of 60 radio tracking collars for island foxes
• several new "Watch for Foxes" road signs
• support for annual rabies and distemper vaccinations

Your donations will continue to work directly for island fox conservation. Please note that when you use the "Donation" buttons at the upper right, donations will be processed through the Channel Islands Park Foundation but will be designated for the Friends of the Island Fox program.