HABITAT UTILIZATION BY URBAN FOXES (VULPES-VULPES) AND THE IMPLICATIONS FOR RABIES CONTROL

The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) is the principal vector of rabies in Weste rn Europe, and the high density of foxes in many British cities is the refore of particular concern. Contingency plans for the control of rab ies in urban areas in Britain are focused on the use of poison baits t o control the fox population, but field trials have so far achieved ba it uptake rates which fall far short of those required. It is possible that greater uptake rates and hence improved efficiency of control co uld be achieved by targeting the baits more effectively towards prefer red fox habitats. To help move towards this goal, we quantified the ha bitat preferences of urban foxes living in Bristol, England using comp ositional analysis. Time spent and distance travelled by individuals w ithin different habitats, as revealed by radio tracking, were used as indicators of habitat preference during bouts of activity, and the fre quency of lying-up sites was used as an indicator of habitat preferenc e during periods of day rime inactivity. Five habitat groupings were c onsidered in the analysis: (1) back gardens, (2) front gardens and com mon gardens, (3) playing fields, parklands, churchyards and cemeteries , (4) roads, verges, shops and commercial centres, and (5) woodlands, rough ground and allotment gardens. Back gardens, woodland, rough grou nd and allotment gardens were the most heavily used habitats in terms of both time spent and distance moved by foxes. These habitats were al so most favoured for day-time lying-up sites. The results are discusse d with reference to their potential implications for bait uptake and r abies control.