Corsac Fox

Corsac Fox[1]
Conservation status

Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Canidae
Genus: Vulpes
Species: V. corsac
Binomial name
Vulpes corsac
(Linnaeus, 1768)
Corsac range

The Corsac Fox (Vulpes corsac), also known as the Steppe Fox, is a medium sized Asiatic fox species spread throughout the central steppes of Asia. It is sometimes referred to as the Tibetan Fox (because it lives in the arid environments north and west of the Tibetan Plateau), or simply as the Sand Fox, but this terminology is confusing because the Tibetan Sand Fox (Vulpes ferrilata), which lives in the high parts of the Tibetan Plateau, is often called the "Sand Fox" or "Tibetan Fox" as well. Rüppell's Fox (Vulpes rueppellii) is also known as the "Sand Fox".

It is very social and lives in "corsac cities" where animals have several dens with connected holes. It prefers some steppe and semi-desert in mountainous areas. It is mainly grey-reddish with silver celadon areas on their coat. The Corsac Fox is threatened by hunting for the fur trade.

Contents

Description

The appearance of the corsac fox is fairly typical among the species of Vulpes. It is gray to grayish-red in colour with silver undertones, the under parts are white with yellow undertones. The fur is also white under the chin and is thick and soft all over. The length of head and body is 50–60 cm, the tail length 22–35 cm, and the average mass of the corsac fox is 2.7 kg. Their back is intensively hoary-reddish. For a fox, it has small teeth and a wide skull. The tip of the tail is black. The Corsac Fox has hooked claws and is able to climb trees.

The mating season starts in January and end in March. Fighting will occur between the male foxes but they stay with the family pack. Typically 2 to 6 young are born after a gestation period of eight weeks. There are reported cases of 11 pups born at a time. They reach sexual maturity within 9-10 months and reproduce in the second year of life. This fox lives up to twelve years in the wild.

Range and habitat

The Corsac Fox lives in the steppes and semi-desert of central and northeast Asia.[2] It is found in large areas of central Asia including northern Afghanistan, northeast China, Kashmir, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.[1][2]

This fox prefers open steppes and semi deserts. True deserts with drifting sands are avoided, so are dense and tall grass steppes, low lying hills are inhabited but not mountains. Corsac foxes generally stay far away from human disturbance. In winter the distribution of corsac foxes are affected by the thickness of snow. They cannot walk on snow with depth over 15 cm.

Corsac fox photo taken in Berlin Zoological Garden.

Behavior

The Corsac fox is a nomadic hunter of the steppes. It does not have a defended territory unlike other foxes, instead they live in social packs. They do not dig their own burrows, but rather they take over those of other animals. The burrow is shared between the social packs, with several den and connecting holes.

As an adaption to the arid climate they live in, the corsac fox need little water to survive. Most of the moisture needed come from its food, which includes small animals, plants, insect, and carrions. They generally search for food alone but will sometimes form packs, and will travel great distances. These foxes cannot hunt in deep snow, and they will move south in harsh winters. Their prey are often buried in caches.

Corsac foxes are excellent climbers, but are rather slow runners and could be caught easily by a dog. While they are reported to be nocturnal in the wild, in captivity they are very active during the day. This can be explained by increasing human disturbances, causing them to become active at night to avoid humans.

Similar species

The Corsac Fox is the same size or slightly smaller than the Red Fox, with larger ears, shorter muzzle, and longer limbs. It is related to the Swift Fox and the Arctic Fox, which are also similar species. However, the closest related species to Corsac Fox is probably the Tibetan Sand Fox, famous for its unusual face and "horned ears".

Subspecies

There are two subspecies of this fox:[1]

Threats

The major threats posed to the Corsac Fox are poaching. The corsac fox are slow runners and are easy catches for hunters, and their population has been reduced in areas where it has been heavily killed for fur. In the late 19th century up to 10,000 foxes were killed annually for pelt trade. The general population remains healthy however, as the corsac fox has proven to be able to withstand great hunting pressures, and their habitat remains intact due to the low population density in its range. The main threat other than poaching is natural disasters, which can cause the numbers of foxes to drop ten-fold in some areas, but the population often recovers quickly. As of 2008, the corsac fox is listed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List, being rather safe from extinction.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Wozencraft, W. Christopher (16 November 2005). "Order Carnivora (pp. 532-628)". In Wilson, Don E., and Reeder, DeeAnn M., eds. Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2 vols. (2142 pp.). ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494. http://www.bucknell.edu/msw3/browse.asp?id=14000869. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Poyarkov, A. & Ovsyanikov, N. (2008). Vulpes corsac. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 2008-04-25. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is of least concern

External links