Vulpes is agenus of thesub-familyCaninae. The members of this genus arecolloquially referred to astrue foxes, meaning they form a properclade. The word "fox" occurs in the common names of all species of the genus, but also appears in the common names of other canid species. True foxes are distinguished from members of the genusCanis, such as domesticateddogs,wolves,jackals andcoyotes, by their smaller size (5–11 kg), longer, bushier tail, and flatter skull.[3] They have black, triangular markings between their eyes and nose, and the tip of their tail is often a different color from the rest of their pelt. The typical lifespan for this genus is between two and four years, but can reach up to a decade.[3]
The Tibetan sand fox, as the name suggests, is endemic to the Tibetan andLadakh plateau inNepal,China,India, andBhutan. This species lives at altitudes up to 5300 m.[6]
The swift fox is found in the western grasslands of North America, specificallyMontana, Wyoming, New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, as well as theCanadian Prairies.
The red fox is the most abundant and most widely distributed species ofVulpes, occurring throughout the Northern Hemisphere (North America,Asia, andEurope). They also are present inAustralia, though they were brought there by humans for fox hunting in the 1830s, and are considered aninvasive species.
The oldest knownfossil species withinVulpes isV. riffautae, dating back to the late Miocene ofChad, which is within theNeogene. Thedeposits where these fossils are found are about 7 million years old, which might make them the earliest Canidae in the Old World. They are estimated to have weighed between 1.5 and 3.5 lb.V. skinneri, from theMalapa Fossil Site fromSouth Africa, is younger thanV. riffautae by roughly 5 million years, and shows up in the early Pleistocene.[9]
Two other extinct, less documented fossils are known:V. praeglacialis andV. hassani.V. praeglacialis was discovered in the Petralona Cave inChalkidiki, Greece. The age of the deposits (EarlyPleistocene) makes it the earliest occurrence ofVulpes in Europe.V. hassani is found in a Miocene-Pliocene deposit in northwestern Africa.[9] This species may have given rise to currentRüppell's fox,[10] which lends support that the closephylogenetic clustering of Rüppels and Red foxes is the result of recentintrogressive hybridization rather than recent speciation.[11]
In the Pleistocene,Vulpes had a fairly wide distribution, with eight species found in North America. Of these eight, six are not fossil, and three species still remain in North America (V. velox,V. macrotis, andV. vulpes). The remaining three moved on to sections of Africa over time.V. stenognathus[12] is extinct, but has extant sister taxa includingV. chama,V. rueppellii,V. velox, andV. vulpes, which fits with these species all evolving together in North America.[citation needed]
True foxes are small to medium-sized animals, usually smaller than other canines, such aswolves,dogs, andjackals. For example, the largest species, thered fox, weighs on average 4.1–8.7 kg[14] and the smallest species, thefennec fox, weighs only 0.7–1.6 kg.[15] They have long, dense fur, and a bushy, rounded tail that is at least half as long, or fully as long as, the head and body. They have a rather long body with shorter limbs, a long, narrow muzzle, and large, pointed ears. The forelimbs have five toes, while the hind legs have only four.[16] The skull is light and slender, elongated. Sagittal crest not developed at all or weakly defined.[17]
Vulpes species have vertically slit pupils, which generally appear elliptical in strong light like those ofcats, which provide them with significant advantages.[18] Like most canids, true foxes have a muscular body, powerful jaws, and teeth for grasping prey. Blunt claws are especially useful for gripping the ground while tracking down their prey.[19] Some species have a pungent "foxy" odor, arising mainly from a gland located on the dorsal surface of the tail, not far from its base.[16] Not muchsexual dimorphism is displayed, although males are slightly larger.[17]
In general,Vulpes has a bone structure very close to that of its canid relatives, but there are some variations. For example, although canid limbs are designed specifically for running quickly on land to catch prey,Vulpes species avoid rapid sprints, excluding when being chased, and have become more specialized for leaping and grasping prey. InVulpes vulpes, for example, the adaptions for leaping, grasping, and climbing include the lengthening of hind limbs in relation to fore limbs, as well as overall slenderizing of both hind and fore limbs. Muscles are also emphasized along the axis of limbs.[20]
The length, color and density of the fur of fox species differ.Fennec foxes (and other desert-adapted fox species such asVulpes macrotis) have large ears and a short coat to keep the body cool.[21] On the other hand, theArctic fox has small ears and a thick, insulating coat to keep the body warm.[22] A solid color coat is seen in most animals, but there are occasions where the coat color varies over the year to enhance camouflage against the current seasons landscape.[19] Thered fox,Ruppell's fox, andTibetan sand fox possess white-tipped tails.[23] TheArctic fox's tail-tip is of the same color as the rest of the tail (white or blue-gray).[24]Blanford's fox usually possesses a black-tipped tail, but a small number of specimens (2% in Israel, 24% in the United Arab Emirates) possess a light-tipped tail.[23] The other foxes in this group (Bengal, Cape, corsac, fennec, kit, pale, and swift) all possess black-tipped or dark-tipped tails.[23]
The range of the genus is very wide, present in a wide variety of habitats, from thedesert to theArctic, and from high altitudes in the mountains to open plains. True foxes are opportunistic and thrive anywhere they can find food and shelter. They are also widespread in suburban and urban areas, where they can take advantage of human food supplies; however, they prefer to stay away from large industrial areas.[25] In certain areas, foxes tend to do better where humans are present, including in many agricultural landscapes,[26] forests and patchy woodlands.
Most true foxes are nocturnal, but they can be active during the morning and dusk and occasionally hunt and scavenge in daylight during winter. Many fox species are solitary or nomadic, living most of their lives on their own, except for the mating season, when they have a monogamous relationship with a partner. Some live in small family groups, others are moregregarious.[27]
Vulpes have a high variation in social organization between species and populations. Theirhierarchical society usually depends on population densities.[28] As population density increases, there is also an increase in the formation of social groups. These groups consist of one dominant pair and a few other subordinate adults that tend to be related. Dominance is established within the den, and dominant kits have usually more access to food and often hold higher social status. If a dispute occurs, dominance is determined by fighting, and the loser may be rejected from its group. These social groups can consist of up to ten adults.[28][29]Cape foxes likely have amatriarchal social organization.[30]
This genus is omnivorous and prone to scavenging. The foods of choice forVulpes consist ofinvertebrates, a variety of smallvertebrates,grasses, and someangiosperms. The typical intake per day is about 1 kg. True foxes exhibit hoarding behavior orcaching where they store away food for another day out of sight from other animals.[31]
Adult foxes have very fewpredators exceptcoyotes,bears, andwolves, depending on the location. Juvenile foxes face a wider range of threats from small carnivores and large birds of prey, such aseagles.[19]
Most true foxes aremonogamous. However, they can formpolyandrous andpolygynous pairs.[32] Breeding season varies between species and habitat, but they generally breed between late December and late March.[19] Most foxes dig out dens to provide a safe underground space for raising their young.[33] Born deaf and blind, kits or cubs require their mother's milk and complete supervision for the first four to five weeks out of the womb, but begin to be progressively weaned after the first month. Once fully weaned, kits seek out various insects. The parents supplement this diet with a variety of mammals and birds. During early to middle July, the kits are able to hunt on their own and soon move away from their parents.[34]
Thesilver fox is a melanistic form of the wild red fox. Though rare,domestication has been documented in silver foxes. The most notable experiment was conducted inNovosibirsk,Russia, at the Siberian Institute of Cytology and Genetics.[35] In this study, generations of silver foxes were divided into those with friendly traits and those with unfriendly traits.[36] After 50 years, the friendly foxes developed “dog-like” domesticated traits such as spots, tail wagging, enjoyment of human touch, and barking.[37]
Fox hunting was started in theUnited Kingdom in the 16th century that involves tracking, chasing, and killing a fox with the aid of foxhounds and horses. It has since then spread to Europe, the United States, and Australia.[38]
^"Blanford's fox". Breeding Centre for Endangered Arabian Wildlife. 29 August 2007. Retrieved 31 August 2010.
^Schaller, G.B., Ginsberg, J.R. & Harris, R. (2008). Vulpes ferrilata. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 22 March 2009.
^“Vulpes pallida”"Vulpes pallida". Archived fromthe original on 2011-10-28. Retrieved2011-10-24.. Canid Specialist Group
^Wozencraft, W. C. (2005). "Order Carnivora". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M.Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press.
^abde Bonis, Louis; Peigné, Stéphane; Likius, Andossa; Mackaye, Hassane Taïsso; Vignaud, Patrick; Brunet, Michel; et al. (2007). "The oldest African fox (Vulpes riffautae n. sp., Canidae, Carnivora) recovered in late Miocene deposits of the Djurab desert, Chad".Naturwissenschaften.94 (7):575–580.Bibcode:2007NW.....94..575D.doi:10.1007/s00114-007-0230-6.PMID17361401.S2CID6073654.
^Basuony, A. E.; Saleh, M.; Hailer, F. (2024). "Mitogenomic analysis of Rüppell's fox (Vulpes rueppellii) confirms phylogenetic placement within the Palaearctic clade shared with its sister species, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes)".Mitochondrial DNA Part A.34:1–7.doi:10.1080/24701394.2024.2332320.PMID38584459.
^Savage, Donald E. (1941). "Two New Middle Pliocene Carnivores from Oklahoma with Notes on the Optima Fauna".The American Midland Naturalist.25 (3):692–710.doi:10.2307/2420725.JSTOR2420725.
^Bartolini Lucenti, S. (2021). "A new large-sized Pliocene fox (Carnivora, Canidae) from Yushe Basin (Shanxi, China)".Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia.127 (1):133–147.doi:10.13130/2039-4942/15206.S2CID244993909.
^Nobleman, Marc Tyler (2007).Foxes. New York: Marshall Cavendish Benchmark.ISBN978-0-7614-2237-2.
^abNowak, R.M.; Macdonald, D.W.; Kays, R.W. (2005).Walker's Carnivores of the World. Johns Hopkins paperback. Johns Hopkins University Press.ISBN978-0-8018-8032-2.
^abGeptner, V. G.; Nasimovich, A. A.; Bannikov, Andreĭ Grigorʹevich; Hoffmann, Robert S. (1988).Mammals of the Soviet Union. Smithsonian Institution Libraries.
^"Red Fox Senses".www.wildlifeonline.me.uk. Wildlife Online. Retrieved1 November 2020.
^Burt, William H (1998).Field guide to mammals: North America north of Mexico. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. pp. 75, plate 7.ISBN978-0-395-91098-6.
^Kamler, Jan F.; Macdonald, David W. (January 2014). "Social organization, survival, and dispersal of cape foxes (Vulpes chama) in South Africa".Mammalian Biology.79 (1):64–70.Bibcode:2014MamBi..79...64K.doi:10.1016/j.mambio.2013.09.004.
^Fedriani, J.M.; T. K. Fuller, R. M. Sauvajot, E. C. York (2000-07-05). "Competition and intraguild predation amount three sympatric carnivores"Oecologia 125 (2) 258-270.doi:10.1007/s004420000448.
.svg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.png)
_-_N._donnezani.png)
_-_V._praeglacialis.png)
.jpg)
_-_C._a._europaeus.png)
_-_C._mosbachensis.png)
_-_C._l._spelaeus.png)
