Lifestyle: Family groups consist of male, 1-3 females,& 1-6 sets of offspring w/ 1-6 kits each. Sibling groups also occur.
Additional Info:
Called: Male: Dog Female: Vixen Young: Kit Group: Skulk
Weight: Male: 9.9 lbs Female: 9.7 lbs Young: 1 lb
Gestation: 9 weeks
Life Span: 5-6 years in wild, up to 13 years in captivity
Height: Male: 1.3 ft Female: 1 ft
Body Length: Male: 2.16 ft Female: 1.5 ft
Tail Length: 1-1.16 ft, same for both sexes
Main predators of adults are lions, cheetahs, hyenas, wild dogs, leopards, jackals, rock pythons, crocodiles, & raptors.
Prey located more often by hearing rather than smell or sight-it’s where those big ears come in handy.
Besides being used in detecting prey, large ears also used for thermoregulation.
Obtain much of their water from their food.
Can breed as young as 6 months old.
Nocturnal in E Africa. In southern Africa, nocturnal in summer & diurnal in winter.
Kits emerge from den at 1-1.5 weeks.
Sometimes persecuted by farmers since it’s perceived as a chicken killer. While they occasionally eat chicks, they’re actually highly beneficial since harvester termites are their favorite food.
Kits suckle for up to 15 weeks.
They’re excellent diggers.
1 family can have more than 10 different den systems.
Males guard kits while females forage.
Large bushy tail can work as rudder when fleeing from predators.
Unlike many canids, they’re only loosely territorial.
Fun Fact(s): They can run as fast as 70 mph.
Ears can be over 5 in long.
Often hang/den around hoofed mammals, because insects hover around their poop-including dung beetles-one of the fox’s favorite foods.
Single fox can eat up to 1.15 million termites per year.
