Fennec Fox

(Fennecus zerda) CLASS: Mammalia ORDER: Carnivora FAMILY: Canidae GENUS & SPECIES: Vulpes (Fennecus) zerda

CLASSIFICATION:

These furry little mammals are the smallest of all canines (canis is Latin for "dog"). Fanak is the Arabic word for "fox." No positive etiology could be found for zerda but it would seem to extend from the Greek xeros, which means "dry." The 'x' is often transliterated to a 'z' when the zzzzz sound is preferred.

The "desert fox" is an appropriate name for this little fellow. Vulpes is Latin for "fox" and is the genus name for the "true foxes." There are some that would call the fennec related to bat-eared foxes, because of its large ears, weak dentition and round pupils, and would keep it in its own genus. Others consider the fennec convergent with the American kit fox and would put it with the swift fox group in the genus Vulpes.

RANGE:

Northern Africa, across the Sahara, the Sinai Peninsula and Arabia.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:

Height: 8 inches

Length:

24 to 40 cm + tail, about 25 cm [ears 15 cm long]

Weight:

- 0.8 to 1.5 kilograms (3-3 ½ pounds maximum)

Very large ears on a very diminutive head and a sharp, tiny muzzle give this little dog a very distinctive look. Typical of a fox, the fennec has a very bushy tail and thick, luxurious fur. Carnassial teeth are small.

Coloration:

Cream to sandy yellow with white "edges" and some black ticking, the fennec blends with the desert sand. The tail is lightly black tipped and the vibrissae (whiskers) are quite long and black. The eyes are very dark and little rhinal pad is black.

DIET:

Zoo:

prepared canine diet, plus occasional freshly killed mice or chicks and some fruit.

Wild:

Large insects like beetles and locusts, small rodents, lizards and occasionally birds; some plant material, when available, like berries and succulent leaves.

BEHAVIOR:

Fennecs den, burrowing under rock piles and the roots of brush. The burrow usually has several entrances. The burrow serves as shelter from weather and enemies. A number of foxes may live together in what becomes an extensive tunnel system. Recent studies with red foxes gives a hint about this behavior. Radio collars and night scopes have revealed that the "solitary" fox isn't. Males actually have a small harem of several related females and their juvenile pups. Since fennecs are known to live in groups, their social system is very likely the same as the red foxes (one of the reasons fennecs are considered vulpine foxes).

These desert foxes are nocturnal, spending the heat of the day in the cool recesses of the burrow. They exit after nightfall to hunt. Fennecs sometimes use the stalk-spring-pounce method of prey capture so often used by red foxes. They also cache food for future use and seem to remember every cache site.

Typical of all foxes, fennecs are very agile. They can jump straight up as much as 2 feet and can make a horizontal leap of 4 feet from a standing position, remarkable for its small size. Such feats are useful in both escape and prey capture. Pups have been observed bouncing, in play, like little balls.

Fennecs, like all foxes, mark territory with fecal piles and urine, dominant individuals urinating more than subordinates. There is a gland on the dorsal tail that is surrounded with black bristles and is of unknown function. It is not rubbed on sign-posts or used in any other obvious way. It may well serve in individual recognition and social bonding. Vocalizations are many and varied.

ADAPTATION:

Fennec vision, typical of predators is binocular and, typical of nocturnal animals, is enhanced by a reflective retina called a tapetum. The tapetum creates the illusion of glowing eyes, a phenomenon called "eye-shine" that is commonly seen in cats, alligators and most other nocturnal vertebrates.

The six-inch-long pinnae of the ears do aid in the funneling of the smallest sounds into the ears and the fennec can hear large insects walking over sand. However, the size of the ears, rather the external ear flaps (pinnae, plural of pinna, Greek for auricle, the "ear flap"- from auris, Latin for ear), is really for the dissipation of heat. An Arctic hare hears as well as a Jackhare (okay, jackrabbit, but it's really a hare); an Arctic fox hears as well as the fennec; an African elephant hears as well as an Asian elephant, but the larger ears serve as radiators for animals that live in hot climates. The African savannah is hot, the rainforest of Asia is comfortably warm. The small, well-furred ears of Arctic animals won't freeze and fall off.

Fennec feet are thickly furred between the pads, effectively insulating the feet from the hot sand. The fur also muffles the fox's footfall, allowing greater stealth when hunting. The enlarged ears of jerboas and other desert rodents convergent with our kangaroo rats enhance the hearing of those prey species in the same way.

Thick fur in a desert animal is not what is usually expected. Because the fennec is nocturnal, it needs insulation against the considerable cold common in desert climates at night. The pale color of the fennec's coat is reflective and helps keep the animal cool when about during the day. The light coat color also provides camouflage against the desert sands.

The fennec will drink water when it is available but can survive long periods without drinking, getting the needed moisture from the food it eats.

BREEDING & GROWTH:

A pair of fennecs may remain together for a number of years. One litter is born a year, after a gestation of about 50 days. Usually 2 altricial pups are born (sometimes 4 or 5) and the mother tends the helpless pups in the den for about two seeks. Both parents share duties in raising the young. Newborns have a short, downy pelage that grows fluffier and more dense as the guard hairs come in. The eyes open at about 2 weeks and nurse for nearly a month before they begin eating prey the parents bring in. Youngsters can get quite pushy when begging for food and it is not unusual for the parent to get very pushy right back, even biting.

Adult size is reached in about none months and sexual maturity shortly thereafter. The whole clan disperses from the den site when the pups are old enough, for the food base is usually fairly depleted by that time. The group will move through its territory, taking advantage of favorite den sites in each area. A successful birthing den will be used over again. Captive longevity is 12 years, how long they live in the wild is not known.

STATUS:

Fennecs are rare in the first place, but they are extirpated by native desert peoples for unknown reasons.

RELATED:

Kit Fox

Grey Wolf

Red Wolf

Dogs