More Catalina Island foxes on the island means more foxes have interactions with humans - interactions that can be deadly for the endangered fox population. According to the Catalina Island Guide, at least 25 foxes died in 2014 due to "vehicle trauma, poisonings and other interactions with humans and human activities." Catalina Island is off the coast of California.
"Recovering the endangered Catalina Island fox population so quickly is one of the great conservation success stories," Catalina Island Conservancy's Chief Conservation and Education Officer John J. Mack told the Catalina Island Guide. "The Conservancy is going to be engaged in active management of the foxes and many more species on this island for generations to come because conservation work is never done, especially on an island visited by nearly one million people each year. Humans have been a part of Catalina's ecosystem for thousands of years, and the conservancy is committed to becoming a leader in modeling conservation in a lived landscape."
Of the known fox deaths in 2014, 21 occurred due to vehicle trauma, but because the animals aren't wearing radio collars or may not die immediately after being hit, the exact number of deaths by auto are not definite. Two foxes drowned in uncovered water containers, one was bitten by an unleashed dog and another ingested rat poison. According to Catalina Island Guide, another six foxes died due to illness and nine died from unknown causes (in some cases, too much decay prevented an accurate necropsy).
Many of the dead foxes were found near garbage cans, so the Conservancy's new program will provide 150 animal-proof trash and recycling containers on its 42,000 acres. Each 80-gallon container costs $2,000.
"Identifying and reducing threats to the health and survival of the endangered Catalina Island fox has been a crucial part of the conservancy's fox recovery program," Julie King, the conservancy's director of conservation and wildlife management, told the Catalina Island Guide. "While we cannot document all fox deaths, we can see that the inadequate handling or containment of trash has become a serious threat to foxes and other wildlife. Installing animal-proof trash and recycling receptacles will prevent the foxes and other wildlife from entering the containers and help eliminate trash spills that attract the foxes and other wildlife into inhabited areas and roadsides, where they may be struck by a vehicle."
An outbreak of canine distemper virus (CDV) brought to the island "likely brought to the island by a stowaway raccoon," according to the Catalina Island Guide, caused the fox population to drop from 1,300 to 100 in 1999. Captive breeding, vaccinations, trans-locations and monitoring has helped restore the Catalina Island fox's numbers.
