Fennec Fox
(Vulpes zerda)
Facts
h(252)c(1)q(90)/1582b52a1d26ec54d549300922656885.jpg)
IUCN LEAST CONCERN (LC)
Facts about this animal
The fennec is a very small fox with extra-large ears and a pin-pointed muzzle.
The fennec's head-body length is 35-40 cm, tail length 15-25 cm, height and shoulder 20 cm, and the weight is 1-1.5 kgs. The ears are 10-15 cm long, the eyes big and black, and there is a very small black node pad at the end of the very pointed muzzle. The fur is very soft and uniformly cream-colioured with whitish underparts. The paws are furred.
The fennec is nocturnal, avoiding the worst heat of the desert by living in burrows during the day. During the night, it will emerge and hunt for rodents, such as spiny mice, gerbils or jerboas, insects, spiders, scorpions, snakes, lizards, and birds. It also eats bird eggs, berries and leaves, and gets most of its water from the food.
Did you know?
that the Fennec fox is the smallest canid in the world?
| Factsheet | |
|---|---|
| Class | MAMMALIA |
| Order | CARNIVORA |
| Suborder | FISSIPEDIA |
| Family | CANIDAE |
| Name (Scientific) | Vulpes zerda |
| Name (English) | Fennec Fox |
| Name (French) | Fennec |
| Name (German) | Fennek, Wüstenfuchs |
| Name (Spanish) | Fenec, Zorro Feneco |
| CITES Status | Appendix II |
| CMS Status | Not listed |
Photo Copyright by
Tim Parkinson
Distribution
| Distribution | |
|---|---|
| Range | Northern Africa to northern Sinai |
| Habitat | Sandy deserts and semi-deserts |
| Wild population | Unknown, but this species is still commonly trapped and sold commercially in northern Africa (IUCN Red list, 2004). |
| Zoo population | 178 reported to ISIS (2006) |
In the Zoo
h(252)c(1)/dee6449f60f893f507119edc8a97014f.jpg)
How this animal should be transported
For air transport, Container Note 82 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.
Find this animal on ZooLex
Photo Copyright by
Kathrin Gaisser
Why do zoos keep this animal
The fennec is probably not threateened in the wild. Zoos keep it primarily for educational purposes to demonstrate the adaptation of the foxes to a desert climate. This is particularly valuable, if also Arctic fox and red fox are exhibited, allowing for a direct comparison of the morphological differences having evolved in response to the different environmental conditions.
How this animal should be kept
The legal requirements for outdoor enclosures vary from country to country. Enclosures with a size of less than 20 m² for an adult pair, including their eventual cubs, should be deemed inacceptable. New enclosures should have a minimum surface of 50 m² for two adults (plus eventual puppies or subadults), and should be enlarged by 10 m² for each additional adult. The enclosure should have natural, well drained soil covered with sand or at least with some sandy patches. It should be well structured allowing the animals to avoid eye contact.
Although temperature in the natural range of the fennec fox may fall below zero degrees, zoos in cold and temperate climatic zones should provide slightly heated indoor enclosures of at least 6 m² per pair should to protect the fennecs from inclement weather. Where it is not possible to give the animals daily access to the outdoor enclosure, the indoor exhibit should have a size of at least 20-50 m². The indoor enclosure should have some hot spots (infrared radiators), and dens serving for sleeping, giving birth and raising cubs.
The diet should consist of meat on the bone, carcases of freshly killed animals, such as mice, rats, guinea pigs, or rabbits, one-day old chicks, eggs and vitamin /mineral powder supplement.