Health Checks for Catalina Island Foxes

biologist checks island fox's teeth

Across Catalina Island biologists are counting island foxes and giving them health checks. Foxes are caught in safe capture cages.

Catalina's population has recovered from the 1998 crisis caused by the introduction of the disease canine distemper. It is natural for populations of wild animals to adjust from year to year. We now know there is a direct connection between rainfall levels and successful island fox reproduction.

The return of drought conditions in 2018 caused an estimated 20% decline in island fox numbers on both Catalina Island and Santa Cruz Island. The Good News is everyone expects 2019's return of normal rainfall levels and a cool spring will bolster plant and animal resources and restrengthen island fox numbers.

We'll be waiting to hear what the biologists find in the field.

island fox receives a distemper vaccination

Lara Brenner, Wildlife Biologist for the Catalina Island Conservancy (CIC), reminds everyone that "Disease is the number one threat to Catalina Island Fox populations." During health checks, biologists monitor fox weight, body condition, and look for "new and emerging health issues."

Catalina is the most visited Channel Island. "Visitors can help protect the Catalina Island fox from disease," Brenner says, "by keeping their pets on a leash when not indoors and by staying up-to-date on your pet's vaccinations." No one wants their pet to pass-on or receive an illness while on vacation.

Wild raccoons are still a possible way for disease to be introduced to any of the islands. Brenner reiterates "Boaters should check their craft for stowaway, non-native animals (like raccoons) that could transmit a fatal disease." 

These simple actions are big steps toward protecting island foxes.

 

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.