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Mange-Compatible Signs in Red Foxes Were Linked to Low Altitude and Higher Mammal Diversity

Red fox without visible mange signs in a study camera-trap photograph
Research · Disease, parasites & microbiology

A camera-trap study published in 2026 found signs compatible with sarcoptic mange in 75 of 2,592 independent red fox (Vulpes vulpes) records from 11 study areas in central Portugal, corresponding to 2.9% of the classified records. Sarcoptic mange is a contagious skin disease caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei, which burrows into the skin and can cause intense itching, hair loss and crusting. Because the study classified visible lesions in photographs, these were mange-compatible records rather than laboratory-confirmed infections. Foxes with mange-compatible lesions were recorded at nine sites.

Camera locations and mange-compatible signs in Central Portugal
Camera locations (a) and proportions of red fox records with mange-compatible signs at each site (b). The yellow dog marker does not use the fox markers’ size scale. Figure 1 from Sousa et al. (2026), unchanged. Sousa et al. / CC BY 4.0.

The photographs were collected during wet and dry seasons in 2022–2024. Researchers checked for hair loss, crusting and skin lesions, and used retained black guard hairs to help distinguish seasonal moulting from probable mange. A further 296 records could not be classified reliably.

The best individual combined model linked mange-compatible signs to lower altitude and greater wild-mammal diversity. Associations with rainfall and vegetation productivity were uncertain in that model. However, averaging the three best models also supported positive associations with rainfall and vegetation productivity.

The authors suggest that environmental conditions and the mammal community can affect opportunities for mite transmission. They recommend complementing camera-trap observations with pathological, parasitological and molecular analyses to confirm the circulation and genotype of Sarcoptes scabiei.

Sources and image credit

  1. Sousa, M., Cunha, M. V., Matias, G., Afonso, B. C., Carvalho, J., Linck, P., Rossa, M., & Rosalino, L. M. (2026). Caught on camera: How climate, biodiversity, and landscape influence sarcoptic mange occurrence in red foxes. Mammalian Biology.

Image: Sousa et al. (2026). Red fox without visible mange signs, photographed by a camera trap in Central Portugal on 21 December 2022. Cropped from Figure 2b of the study. CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). · CC BY 4.0 · Source

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