Urocyon littoralis
Silhouette: Brian Gratwicke (photo) and T. Michael Keesey (vectorization) · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The island fox (Urocyon littoralis) is a small fox species that is endemic to six of the eight Channel Islands of California. They evolved from their larger mainland gray fox ancestor (U. cinereoargenteus) and have diversified into six subspecies, each confined to its own island and all exhibiting insular dwarfism. Island foxes are generally docile, show little fear of humans, and are easily tamed. Island foxes have played an important role in the spiritual lives of native Channel Islanders. They were likely semi-domesticated as pets, for their pelts, or other functions, like pest control. Genetic and archaeological evidence suggests that the foxes arrived on the islands around 7,000 years ago, probably with the assistance of early human populations.
Genetic and archaeological evidence indicates that the species descends from a population of the mainland gray fox that arrived on the islands around 7,300 years ago, possibly due to having been introduced to the islands by humans. Humans are almost certainly responsible for their presence on the southern islands. The species is around 25% smaller than its mainland ancestor, an example of insular dwarfism.... Wikipedia →
Recording0:18
United States · 2023
© ldrenth1 · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Living Desert Zoo and Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Santa Barbara Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Zoo. La Isla del Tapir | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 4 | Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center and Woods Garden | 🇺🇸 United States |
Very likely
About 90% of wildlife watchers report an Island Fox sighting in Channel Islands National Park on a given day, based on 1,561 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the most-seen of the 22 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
October to July
In those months about 90% of wildlife watchers report an Island Fox in Channel Islands National Park on a given day, against about 80% in August and September, the lowest months.
Between 11 pm and 2 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Island Fox sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is mostly seen at night.
Only Channel Islands National Park, in our data
Channel Islands National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Island Fox sightings: about 90% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Island Fox is recorded against all the mammals logged in Channel Islands National Park (1,561 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
