Parasite fauna of red foxes in Berlin (West)

The infestation with ecto- and endoparasites of red foxes in Berlin (West) was investigated. As shown by post mortems of 100 animals (47 males and 53 females), none of them was found to be free of parasites. With regard to ectoparasites, 3 species of ixodes ticks, 7 flea species, one species of biting lice and mite species were demonstrated. The sarcoptic mange is often inducing the death of the foxes and is considered to be a limiting factor of the population increment. Concerning endoparasites, cestodes (6 species), trematodes (7 species), nematodes (10 species) and 3 coccidian species were found. The infestation rate with different species of hook worms, ascarids and mesocestoides was remarkably high. However, none of the foxes were infected with Trichinella spiralis or Echinococcus multilocularis. As shown by ELISA, in 15% of foxes antibodies against Borrelia burgdorferi were found. Therefore, the red fox must be considered as a reservoir host for Lyme-borreliosis.