Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) as reservoir of parasites and source of zoonosis. This review presents data from Europe and Poland on the prevalence of helminth and protozoan parasites in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes). The most common nematodes were geohelminths: Uncinaria stenocephala, Toxocara canis and Toxocara leonina. As concerning Trichinella genus T. britovi was found more often than T. spiralis. Among tapeworms the following species were recorded: Mesocestoides lineatus, Taenia sp., and Echinococcus multilocularis. Detected cases of E. Multilocularis together with an increase of fox population during last few years create a potential human risk of infection. The results of many studies indicate rare presence of trematodes (Alaria alata) and protozoan parasites (Toxoplasma gondii, Neospora caninum, Leishmania spp., Eimeria spp.) in red foxes.
The studies were carried out in 15 provinces of North-West part of Poland in the years 1994-1997 under a regime of strict laboratory safety regulation. The intestine of 1909 red foxes were examined for the presence of Echinococcus multilocularis according to the method of ECKERT et al (1991). The intestines were divided finto four to six sections and fifteen smears were prepared from each animal under study. Foxes infected with E. multilocularis were detected in 8 provinces. The average prevalence rate in these provinces was 1.20 per cent. Of special interest fis the finding in Słupsk and Gdańsk regions, where 9.6 per cent of foxes were infected-with E. multilocularis. In comparison with some other European endemic regions the prevalence rates of E. multilocularis in Poland was low, except for the Słupsk-Gdańsk area.