Kleinsäuger mit Haarproben zuverlässig bestimmen

Um das Vorkommen der Schweizer Kleinsäugetiere zu untersuchen, müssen diese lebend gefangen und bestimmt werden. Gewisse ähnliche Arten lassen sich jedoch morphologisch nicht genau unterscheiden. Für eine sichere Artbestimmung ist deshalb bei einigen Arten eine DNA-Analyse unumgänglich. Die Entnahme von Haarproben ermöglicht eine für das Tier schnelle und schonende Gewinnung von DNA

Régime alimentaire chez le Renard roux (Vulpes vulpes L.) et ressources alimentaires dans une vallée des Alpes suisses

Capt Simon. Régime alimentaire chez le Renard roux (Vulpes vulpes L.) et ressources alimentaires dans une vallée des Alpes suisses. In: Revue d'Écologie (La Terre et La Vie), tome 40, n°2, 1985. p. 185

Sarcoptic mange in Foxes in Switzerland

Wandeler A.I., Kappeler Andreas, Capt Simon. Sarcoptic mange in Foxes in Switzerland. In: Revue d'Écologie (La Terre et La Vie), tome 40, n°2, 1985. p. 240

Geographical barriers to wildlife rabies spread : the concept and it’s application in oral immunization of Foxes against rabies

Kappeler Andreas, Wandeler A.I., Capt Simon. Geographical barriers to wildlife rabies spread : the concept and it’s application in oral immunization of Foxes against rabies. In: Revue d'Écologie (La Terre et La Vie), tome 40, n°2, 1985. p. 267

Re-introduction and present status of the lynx (<em>Lynx Lynx</em>) in Switzerland

<strong>Abstract</strong> A lynx recovery programme started in Switzerland in 1970. From 1970-76, at least 14 lynx were translocated from the Carpathian Mountains into the Swiss Alps. Another re-introduction took place in the Jura Mountains, but no corridors exist as a connection between these two popula- tions in Switzerland. The development of the populations was not monitored at first. In 1980 systematic research was initiated, which gradually evolved into the Swiss Lynx Project. Not all releases were successful, but the re-introduction in the northern and western Alps founded a population that covered an area of some 4000 km² in 1981. In the western Swiss Alps, lynx moved into Italian and French territory. Towards the eastern Swiss Alps, the expansion was slower and ceased about ten years ago. During the last five years, there even has been a reduction of the area occupied. Today, the population covers an area of about 10000 km² in the Swiss Alps, of which 50% is suitable lynx habitat. Based on size and overlap of average home ranges of radio-tagged lynx, the population was estimated to include some 50 adult residents. At present, the growth rate of the population appears to be too low to allow a further expansion in range. It is uncertain whether recruitment is sufficient to compensate for the high losses among resident adults induced by traffic accidents and illegal killing

Spatiotemporal spread of sarcoptic mange in the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in Switzerland over more than 60 years: lessons learnt from comparative analysis of multiple surveillance tools.

BACKGROUND Sarcoptic mange is a contagious skin disease of wild and domestic mammals caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei. Reports of sarcoptic mange in wildlife increased worldwide in the second half of the 20th century, especially since the 1990s. The aim of this study was to provide new insights into the epidemiology of mange by (i) documenting the emergence of sarcoptic mange in the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in the last decades in Switzerland; and (ii) describing its spatiotemporal spread combining data obtained through different surveillance methods. METHODS Retrospective analysis of archived material together with prospective data collection delivered a large dataset from the 19th century to 2018. Methods included: (i) a review of historical literature; (ii) screening of necropsy reports from general health surveillance (1958-2018); (iii) screening of data on mange (1968-1992) collected during the sylvatic rabies eradication campaign; (iv) a questionnaire survey (<1980-2017) and (v) evaluation of camera-trap bycatch data (2005-2018). RESULTS Sarcoptic mange in red foxes was reported as early as 1835 in Switzerland. The first case diagnosed in the framework of the general health surveillance was in 1959. Prior to 1980, sarcoptic mange occurred in non-adjacent surveillance districts scattered all over the country. During the period of the rabies epidemic (1970s-early 1990s), the percentage of foxes tested for rabies with sarcoptic mange significantly decreased in subregions with rabies, whereas it remained high in the few rabies-free subregions. Sarcoptic mange re-emerged in the mid-1990s and continuously spread during the 2000-2010s, to finally extend to the whole country in 2017. The yearly prevalence of mange in foxes estimated by camera-trapping ranged from 0.1-12%. CONCLUSIONS Sarcoptic mange has likely been endemic in Switzerland as well as in other European countries at least since the mid-19th century. The rabies epidemics seem to have influenced the pattern of spread of mange in several locations, revealing an interesting example of disease interaction in free-ranging wildlife populations. The combination of multiple surveillance tools to study the long-term dynamics of sarcoptic mange in red foxes in Switzerland proved to be a successful strategy, which underlined the usefulness of questionnaire surveys

Present status and distribution of the Lynx in the Swiss Alps

&lt;strong&gt;Abstract&lt;/strong&gt; To evaluate the population trend of lynx in the Swiss Alps, we analysed the spatial and numerical development of signs of presence found from 1995 to 1999 and compared them with previous years. Three sources of information on the presence of lynx are available: (1) reports of lynx killed or found dead; (2) records of livestock killed by lynx; (3) records of wild prey remains, tracks, scats, sightings, and vocalisations. We distinguished three levels of reliability: Quality 1 represent the hard facts, e.g. all reports of lynx killed or found dead, photographs of lynx as well as young orphaned lynx caught in the wild and taken into captivity. Quality 2 include all records of livestock killed, wild prey remains, tracks and scats reported by people who have attended special courses, e.g. mainly game wardens. Quality 3 are all wild prey remains and tracks reported by the general public as well as all sightings, scats and vocalisations, e.g. signs that cannot be verified. More than 1600 signs of presence were recorded in the Swiss Alps in this 5-year-period. A high number of quality 1 and 2 records showed that (1) the lynx population in the north-western Swiss Alps increased from 1994 to 1999, that (2) there is a moderate presence of the species in the central and south-western parts and (3) none or hardly any lynx are found in the eastern Alps of Switzerland. Based on a radio-telemetry study and the number of quality 2 data, we were able to estimate the number of lynx in the Swiss Alps at 70 individuals. To counterpart the uneven distribution of lynx in Switzerland, lynx are being translocated from the north-western Alps to the eastern Swiss Alps, as the expansion of the Swiss lynx population is crucial for the conservation of the lynx in the whole Alps