Some Observations on Rabies in Alaska, with Special Reference to Wild Canidae

It is the purpose of this paper to summarize available information on outbreaks of rabies recorded in canine animals in Alaska over a 9-year period (1949-57), and to discuss some problems relating to the natural history of rabies in high boreal regions. Four species of wild canids occur in Alaska: (1) coyotes, Canis latrans, are found throughout most of the forested interior; (2) wolves, Canis lupus, are distributed over the entire mainland, excepting those regions where wild ruminants are absent; (3) arctic foxes, Alopex lagopus, are restricted in their distribution on the mainland to the tundra zone of northern and western Alaska-they also inhabit islands in the Bering Sea (Nunivak, the Pribilofs, the St. Matthew Islands, and St. Lawrence), and have been introduced on many of the Aleutian Islands; (4) red foxes, Vulpes vulpes, are found over the entire mainland, and are indigenous on Kodiak, Unimak, and Nunivak Islands. They sometimes reach St. Lawrence Island by means of the pack ice, but do not occur on the other remote islands in the Bering Sea. FIG. 1. Major biotic regions of Alaska. The treeless regions of northern and western Alaska are tundra; much of the Alaska Peninsula is grown to Alnus and other nonarborescent species. Treeless coastal areas east of the Kenai Peninsula represent glaciers. (Map compiled from various sources.)