Friends of the Island Fox
135 episodes - English - Latest episode: 14 days ago - ★★★★ - 3 ratingsReference materials on Channel Island fox: its biology, behavior, habitat, research, endangered status and conservation efforts. Home of Friends of the Island Fox a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. FIF is dedicated to preserving the island fox in the wild and providing education outreach to schools and communities.
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Episodes
Are Grapes Toxic to Island Foxes and Gray Foxes?
April 12, 2024 16:00Recently, 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 ...
Fox Foto Friday - Injured Island Fox Back on Her Feet
March 29, 2024 16:00This 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...
FIF Research Grant Application 2024
March 22, 2024 16:00 - 532 KB application/pdfFriends of the Island Fox is currently taking applications through June 30 for the FIF 2024 Research Grant Download Application From the complex relationship between island foxes and island spotted skunks, to diet, microbiome impacts on health, and changing territory sizes, research projects are revealing the complexities of the Channel Island ecosystem and the role of island foxes in island ecology. In 2024, Friends of the Island Fox is offering up to $7,000 in support to research ...
FIF 2023 Research Grant to Investigate Individual Island Fox Impact
March 15, 2024 16:00FIF awarded a second Research Grant in 2023 to Juliann Schamel, NPS biologist and graduate student in Ecology and Conservation at University of Aberdeen, Scotland... Juliann Schamel in the field with island fox and Dr. Alexandria DeCandia, biology professor at Georgetown University... Dr. Alexandria DeCandia for their project: From Microbes to Habitats: How Individual Fox Foraging Behavior Cascades Through an Ecosystem. Schamel and De Candia are combining their respective work ...
Stable Isotopes Document Decade of Dietary Change in Island Foxes
March 09, 2024 02:17 - 12.6 MB application/pdfJuliann Schamel has been researching island fox diet using stable isotopes in whisker samples since 2018. Friends of the Island Fox has supported the processing of whisker samples through several Research Grants. In November of 2023, Schamel presented the following poster of her latest work at the California Islands Symposium. Using Stable Isotopes to Assess a Decade of Dietary Resource Use in Two Sympatric Island Endemics: The Island Fox and the Island Spotted Skunk (link to complete post...
You Did It! You Gave An Island Fox a Second Chance!
February 26, 2024 21:13Thank you to our donors - near and far! Over the past three days, you've responded with overwhelming support and raised the funds to pay for special orthopedic surgery needed for this young injured island fox. Her story Thank you to: FIF's long-time donors Our Instagram followers Our "X" followers especially our "Hijinkai" who love island foxes from afar in Japan You all have helped to give this island fox a second chance on life.
Injured Island Fox Pup Gets Second Chance
February 23, 2024 23:31You can help this young island fox Friends of the Island Fox is raising funds to pay for her orthopedic surgery During the annual fall 2023 counting and island fox health checks on San Nicolas Island, biologists discovered this female pup with a recently injured right hind leg. The bones just above her foot, the metatarsal bones, had been fractured and the wound was open. The injury was too severe for treatment on the remote Navy island. According to our friends with the U.S. Navy and th...
Unexpected Creatures During Island Fox Counting - Part 4
January 25, 2024 17:00Welcome guest blogger Jessica Sanchez, wildlife veterinarian and FIF Board Member. She's explained how island foxes are captured annually in Part 1, shown how a fox's body condition is evaluated in Part 2, and demonstrated health procedures preformed on island foxes during an annual health check in Part 3. As she explains, she might be out capturing island foxes, but they aren't the only animals she encounters. We also catch island spotted skunks, although this has become rarer in recent ye...
Island Fox Gets a Health Check - Part 3
January 22, 2024 21:00Welcome guest blogger Jessica Sanchez, wildlife veterinarian and FIF Board Member. She's explained how island foxes are captured annually in Part 1 and shown how a fox's body condition is evaluated in Part 2. But an island fox health check includes additional health measures. We check the foxes for ectoparasites such as ticks, fleas, mites, and lice. We comb their fur to find fleas, and pay special attention to their ears, armpits, and belly area–where lice and ticks are often found. Tick...
An Island Fox Gets a Health Check - Part 2
January 19, 2024 17:00Welcome guest blogger Jessica Sanchez, wildlife veterinarian and FIF Board Member. In Part 1, she explained how island foxes are captured annually. Now, she'll take us through an island fox health check. As biologists and veterinarians, we carefully remove the fox from the box trap, being sure not to get their tail caught in the door! Island foxes are blindfolded to help keep them calm and reduce stress. Foxes do not have any natural predators on the Channel Islands so they are very brave,...
How Do Biologists Capture Island Foxes?
January 17, 2024 00:32Meet guest blogger, FIF Board Member, Jessica Sanchez. Sanchez is a wildlife veterinarian and epidemiologist who's been working with Channel Island foxes since 2006. She started her career managing the captive breeding and wild fox monitoring program on Santa Cruz Island. For her master's degree, she researched social interactions among island foxes, and modeled vaccination and monitoring methods to prevent and detect disease outbreaks. She is currently a consulting veterinarian for island...
Fox Foto Friday - Radio Collars on San Miguel Island Foxes
December 16, 2023 23:59Look who's getting radio tracking collars! Island foxes born on San Miguel Island in April of 2023 are now adults and large enough to wear radio collars. Three were fitted with radio collars this week. The mask helps the island fox remain calm while the collar is being fitted. Channel Island National Park biologists report this year's young adults are looking very healthy. Watch them for yourself as they are released with their new radio collars. Your donations to Friends of the Isl...
Date With A Fox - Tim Coonan, Biologist
November 29, 2023 00:39Join Friends of the Island Fox for a Virtual Event ! "Date with a Fox" with guest Tim Coonan Tuesday, December 5 6:30 - 7:30 pm Pacific Time on Zoom Tim Coonan is the retired Senior Biologist for Channel Islands National Park. He documented the mysterious decline of island foxes across the northern Channel Islands and uncovered that golden eagles had colonized the islands and were unexpectedly preying on island foxes. How were the decisions made to bring island foxes into captive ...
She's Back! F257 - an Island Fox with a Story
November 13, 2023 17:00F257 was true to form in 2023. She was captured during island-wide counting on Santa Rosa Island for the fifth year in a row! This charismatic female island fox was first captured and radio-collared in the fall of 2019 as a pup of that year. She was collared in the territory where she was born and there were thoughts she might provide additional data on how far female offspring disperse from their parents' territory. She didn't go anywhere. F257 remained in the coastal plain of her chi...
FIF 2023 Research Grant to Help Count Island Spotted Skunks
November 06, 2023 19:02Friends of the Island Fox received a record number of grant applications this year. Funds were awarded to two projects. Today we highlight: Desirae Thomaier a masters student in Biological Sciences at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Island foxes share their habitat with island spotted skunks on Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa Islands. When island fox numbers declined due to golden eagles, island spotted skunk numbers increased dramatically. As island fox populations recovered, skunk numbers appear...
Island Foxes Are Getting New Radio Collars
August 31, 2023 22:36Six new radio collars funded by Friends of the Island Fox will arrive on Catalina Island next week! Across the Channel Islands, island foxes are receiving annual health checks and new radio-tracking collars. Watch the video below of M173. He is a four-year-old male on Santa Rosa Island and his radio collar was replaced last week during his health check. He is not tranquilized. The green hood covers his eyes and keeps his mouth closed. This keeps him calm and enables biologists to q...
FIF Research Grant Application Deadline Approaching
August 04, 2023 16:00 - 531 KB application/pdfAre island spotted skunks genetically different enough from mainland spotted skunks to warrant species status? FIF 2022 Research Grant recipient Julia Owen is probing the island spotted skunk genome. Are island foxes crossing into the territory of other island foxes to access beach foods on Santa Rosa Island? FIF 2021 Research Grant recipient Katie Elder and recipient Juliann Schamel continue to investigate island fox territory size and diet. Are you investigating island foxes, prey...
Radio Collars and Vaccines Arrive for Island Foxes
July 21, 2023 21:34Island 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 biologist...
Island Fox Status Update 2023
June 20, 2023 17:00Island fox populations are healthy, but the differences between each island subspecies are becoming more apparent. The following is the update from across the Channel Islands as compiled from notes by Friends of the Island Fox at the 25th Annual Island Fox Working Group Meeting held May 18, 2023 at the Santa Barbara Zoo (hybrid meeting). Reported population numbers are official estimates from each land manager as calculated during the 2022 counting period. (How are island foxes counte...
Island Fox Ambassadors Making a Difference
June 09, 2023 16:00Island Fox Ambassadors help island foxes by: educating others about island foxes directly supporting island fox conservation in some way or improving the island fox's habitat Magic Wands for Foxes Benjamin and Larissa in Georgia wanted to help island foxes. They handmade these magic wands and sold them. Their hard work and creative idea help fund the refurbishing of a radio collar that will be going on an island fox this summer. Cans for Vaccinations Kris in California became pa...
Supporting Island Fox Health Across the Channel Islands
June 02, 2023 22:04Every 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 ...
What Questions Do You Have For Island Fox Experts?
May 12, 2023 23:44Next week the Island Fox Conservation Working Group meets for its 25th Annual Meeting ! It's a time to celebrate the biologists, land managers, researchers, technicians, veterinarians, ecologists, government agencies, academic institutions, and conservation organizations that all came together to formulate a plan and take action to save island foxes from extinction and shepherd their recovery. It is also a time to ask questions of the folks that were on the ground trying to discern...
FIF Research Grant 2023
April 19, 2023 00:30 - 531 KB application/pdfFriends of the Island is taking applications through August for the FIF 2023 Research Grant Download APPLICATION From dietary investigation linked with territory use to microbes affecting island fox health, new science is revealing the complex world of island foxes and the Channel Island ecosystem. This year FIF will be offering up to $7,000 in support toward research projects benefiting greater understanding of island foxes and the Channel Islands. Last year's grant project is working...
Join FIF on a Trip to Santa Cruz Island
March 31, 2023 02:16Spring is a great time to visit the Channel Islands! Friends of the Island Fox is headed to Santa Cruz Island for the day on: May 20th, 2023 We'll check-in at Ventura Harbor at 8:15 am and return around 5 pm. The $75 (per person) registration includes: boat fare, FIF naturalist guides on the island, and a donation to support vaccinating island foxes against canine distemper virus. 4/14/23 Trip is SOLD OUT Each trip to the islands is an adventure... ... and we never know for sur...
Everything You Wanted to Know About Island Fox Pups
March 13, 2023 17:00 - 989 KBisland fox pup, courtesy of I. Rose Across the Channel Islands, island fox parents are finding hidden-away spots for a den where females can give birth to pups. Most island fox pups are born in April. How big are island fox pups at birth? Small - about the size and weight of two AA batteries. What do you call baby island foxes? Pups or kits. At birth their natal fur is a cocoa brown and their ears appear small and rounded. The pup pictured was born at a zoo in 2006–at that time there was...
Island Foxes on the Cover of Molecular Ecology
February 25, 2023 01:34Fox Foto Friday - Island foxes make the cover of another scientific journal! Friends of the Island Fox congratulates Jasmine Lu on the publication of her paper–"Ear mite infection restructures otic microbial networks in conservation–reliant Santa Catalina Island foxes (Urocyon littoralis catalinae)"–in Molecular Ecology. Working with Dr. Alexandra DeCandia, Lu investigated the connections between bacteria communities and ear mite infection to understand why island foxes on Catalina bec...
Fresno Chaffee Zoo Helps Island Foxes
February 18, 2023 03:22What are those island foxes whispering? They are spreading the word that the Fresno Chaffee Zoo Wildlife Conservation Fund has provided island foxes with a special end of the year 2022 grant. $2,400 will help fund Canine Distemper Virus and Rabies vaccinations Canine distemper virus is typically fatal to island foxes. To protect them, a minimum number of 100 island foxes are vaccinated each year on each island. Because the vaccine that is safe for island foxes only provides protection...
Virtual Program: How Microbes Influence Island Fox Health and Understanding Island Spotted Skunks
January 27, 2023 20:26Join Friends of the Island Fox for a virtual "Date with a Fox" Tuesday, January 31 at 6:30–7:30 pm (Pacific Time) on Zoom Hear directly from researchers investigating island fox health and biologists working in the field on the Channel Islands. Jasmine Lu became acquainted with Channel Island foxes while working on her senior thesis at Princeton under the guidance of Alexandra DeCandia, Ph.D. Their work investigated how mite infection can destabilize the microbial community structure ...
Fox Foto Friday - Rain, Races, & Island Foxes
January 06, 2023 21:22The rains are bringing renewed resources to the Channel Islands! Time to bask in the sun and be hopeful for a positive 2023. This photo was taken by FIF volunteer Megan Sarrail in December on Santa Cruz Island. Avalon 50K Update - Island foxes are sad to report that Cassidy Smith has sustained an injury making her unable to run in the Avalon 50K on Saturday, January 7. The sponsorships she has received will be carried over to a new race and still go to work helping island foxes. While ...
FIF Research Grant Will Investigate Island Spotted Skunk Genome
December 13, 2022 17:00Meet Julia Owen, a researcher at the University of California, Davis Mammalian Ecology and Conservation Unit. FIF's 2022 Research Grant will help process samples in Owen's effort to decode the genome of island spotted skunks and determine their genetic history. When did this island endemic diverge from a mainland ancestor and which mainland spotted skunk is their closest ancestor? Little is known of the island spotted skunk that shares habitat with island foxes on two islands–Santa Ro...
Running for Island Foxes!
December 06, 2022 18:32Cassidy Smith has found a new way to help raise funds and awareness of island foxes! On January 7th, 2023 Cassidy is running in the Avalon 50K (= to 31 miles!) And she'll be doing it to benefit island foxes! The course will take her and more than 700 other participants along Catalina Island's mountain ridges and down canyons, from Avalon to Little Harbor and back. Along the way island foxes will be cheering Cassidy on! You can join-in the effort and sponsor Cassidy through FIF'...
Fox Foto Friday - Happy Fox-o-ween
October 29, 2022 01:28We love this island fox pumpkin carved by 2020 FIF Research Grant recipient Katie Elder. See Katie's report on GPS tracking collar study Happy Halloween !
Radio Collars Going On Island Foxes!
October 21, 2022 16:00Radio-tracking collars are the primary way that island fox survival is monitored across the Channel Islands. 12 new radio collars and 21 refurbished radio collars funded by your donations are going on island foxes RIGHT NOW on Catalina Island. Across Catalina Island wildlife biologists are giving island foxes health checks. Weighing them, checking their ears, teeth, and overall condition. Meet wildlife biologist Emily Hamblin and hear how she gives health checks to island foxes....
Fox Foto Friday - Island Foxes Say: "Happy 50th"
October 15, 2022 02:43Happy 50 Years of protecting Catalina Island's wildlife and wild places to the Catalina Island Conservancy (CIC). This photo says it all. Twenty-three years ago Catalina Island foxes faced extinction from introduced canine distemper virus. Today Catalina's island foxes thrive. Friends of the Island Fox works with CIC to help vaccinate island foxes, provide radio collars for monitoring survival and investigate threats from other virus introductions. Protecting island foxes takes a comm...
Do You Remember This Fox? It's F257
September 16, 2022 16:00Even with her face covered, F257 from Santa Rosa Island is a stunning island fox. Her coat is lustrous, her weight is good, she looks healthy. The mask/muzzle helps keep her calm during her health check. You might remember F257 from 2021, 2020, and 2019. She received her first health check when she was a pup in July of 2019. In the winter of 2019, she was fitted with her first radio tracking collar. F257 continues to live in the Old Ranch area on Santa Rosa Island. This is the same ar...
Zoos Helping Island Foxes
September 09, 2022 16:00Sometimes you have to look behind the scenes to see the important role that zoos play in wildlife conservation. The island fox has several important zoo friends. Fresno's Chaffee Zoo Fresno's Chaffee Zoo has been a vital partner in island fox recovery and health for 16 years. It started with a few zoo keepers committed to helping island foxes and a donation for a radio-tracking collar. When the zoo established their Wildlife Conservation Fund, Friends of the Island Fox was a 2014 grant...
FIF Research Grant Deadline for 2022 Approaches
August 10, 2022 18:55 - 541 KB application/pdfSmall pieces of island fox whisker can reveal big data on island fox diet and behavior. Analyzing stable isotopes in slivers of island fox whisker, Juliann Schamel (Research grant recipient 2018 and 2019) has been uncovering the range of diet eaten by island foxes, drought impacts on their diet, and a new understanding of how some island foxes use marine resources. Your scientific research could also benefit island fox survival and the management of rare and endangered species. Friend...
2022 Island Fox Status Update
July 08, 2022 16:00Island fox populations remain stable, but continuing drought raises concerns. This is the update from across the Channel Islands as compiled from notes by Friends of the Island Fox at the Island Fox Working Group Meeting held May 11, 2022 at the Santa Barbara Zoo (hybrid meeting). Reported population numbers are official estimates from each land manager as calculated during the 2021 counting period. (How are island foxes counted) Overview: While adult island foxes appeared healthy acro...
Testing for Disease Threats on Catalina Island
July 01, 2022 16:30At the Island Fox Working Group Meeting in May, FIF provided $4,500 to support testing for disease antibodies on Catalina Island during 2022 island fox health checks. This effort spots viruses introduced to the island. If a fox comes in contact with a virus, its immune system will develop antibodies to try and fight off the disease. This is similar to how COVID-19 is tracked in humans. We know this effort is important because FIF funding in 2021 helped biologists on Catalina Island ...
Friends of the Island Fox Vaccinates Island Foxes
June 24, 2022 16:00You'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 ...
GPS Tracking Collars vs Radio Telemetry Collars
June 11, 2022 22:27Radio telemetry collars are used across the Channel Islands to monitor island fox survival. These collars help biologists locate an island fox in real time and they give a specific signal when a fox is alive and moving around. Fifty to sixty island foxes on each island wear radio telemetry collars. Most of these are sentinel foxes. FIF funds radio collars to monitor island foxes. GPS tracking collars record exact GPS coordinates. They have an additional antenna (that black bump at the to...
Island Foxes and Carrying Capacity
May 06, 2022 18:17"Carrying capacity" is a term used in biology to describe when a habitat has reached the maximum population of a specific species that can be supported by the habitat's resources. Think of a table with a platter of cookies. If there are more cookies than people, individuals will recruit others to enjoy the cookies; the population at the table increases. If there is just one cookie for each person, carrying capacity has been reached. If there are more people than cookies the table has exce...
FIF Taking Applications for 2022 Research Grant
April 15, 2022 21:34 - 541 KB application/pdfThis is a GPS radio collar being prepped to be worn by an island fox this summer. Katie Elder was FIF's 2021 Research Grant recipient and she will be investigating territory size on Santa Rosa Island. More on her work Friends of the Island Fox is taking applications for our 2022 FIF Research Grant now through August 29, 2022. Application What will you uncover about island foxes? Research in island fox ecology is an investment in the future and island fox survival. Not only is this wo...
Island Foxes and Beach Foods
April 05, 2022 16:00 - 40.7 MB application/pdfIn 2018 Juliann Schamel was the recipient of Friends of the Island Fox's first Research Grant. Her investigation of island fox diet through stable isotopes in whiskers has evolved and deepened to look for connections between diet and surviving drought conditions. In 2019 FIF continued to fund Schamel's research as she followed the foxes and the potential of "beach foods" in their diet. It is no coincidence that the island fox above is in a beach area. If you look closely at the pile of ...
Island Foxes, the U.S. Navy, and Island Spotted Skunks
April 03, 2022 00:20"Date with a Fox" February 2022 Island foxes on San Clemente Island live with an active U.S. Navy Base, while island foxes on Santa Cruz Island live with island spotted skunks. FIF's February virtual program "Date with a Fox" featured: Holly Gamblin a biologist with the Institute for Wildlife Studies on San Clemente Island. Gamblin provided a rare inside-look at the island foxes on the U.S. Navy island. Few civilians have access to San Clemente Island. Research biologist Ellie Bolas...
Island Fox Webinar Today
March 30, 2022 17:41Find out more about island foxes TODAY! Wednesday, March 30 3 - 4 pm Pacific Time, 6 - 7 pm Eastern Time in conjunction with Wolf Park in Indiana Friends of the Island Fox will be giving a webinar on island foxes, with an update on Dr. Alexandra DeCandia's microbiome research. To register for this free on-line event: Wolf Park Webinars Wolf Park is celebrating 50 years of conservation of canine species and has been a supporter of island fox research.
Friends of the Island Fox Presentation for CIC Speaker Series
February 22, 2022 02:03When island foxes on four islands became threatened with extinction 22 years ago, little was known about their natural history. Join Friends of the Island Fox President Mike Watling and Ed. Director Keri Dearborn on Friday, Feb. 25 at 5:30 pm PT for Catalina Island Conservancy's Last Friday Speaker Series We'll talk about what's been learned about these charismatic little predators and the important role they play in the island ecosystem as a keystone ...
Love is in the Air for Island Foxes, Too
February 04, 2022 23:21February isn't just the month of romance for humans, it is also when island fox pairs find a den and mate. Island foxes are more monogamous than their gray fox ancestors. Territory and resources are limited on the Channel Islands and a pair of island foxes works together to protect their territory from other island foxes. They also work together to provide food for their pups. For the first month or so of the pups' lives, the female island fox stays close to the den to feed the pups and ...
Fox Foto Friday - Beginning of the Year Surprise!
January 28, 2022 20:15What is it? 15 refurbished radio collars! These radio-telemetry collars, still in their packaging, have just arrived for island foxes on Santa Cruz Island. They come packaged as pairs of collars set inside each other with their antennae wrapped around. The Fresno Chaffee Zoo Wildlife Conservation Fund provided FIF with a special year-end grant that funded these 15 refurbished radio collars and will fund serology testing for Catalina Island foxes this summer. We are so thankful for our...
Friends of the Island Fox is Now a Partner with 1% for the Planet
January 21, 2022 19:32Friends of the Island Fox is pleased to announce that we have joined 1% for the Planet as a nonprofit partner! This partnership is intended to advance our impact on the Channel Islands as well as involve more businesses and individuals in the environmental movement. 1% for the Planet is committed to building support for the essential work of Friends of the Island Fox and other nonprofit partners within six core issue areas: climate, food, land, pollution, water and wildlife. 1% for the ...