Populations of the Murray River Tortoise, Emydura (Chelodina): the Effect of Egg Predation by the Red Fox, Vulpes vulpes

1983 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 363 ◽  
Author(s):  
MB Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Age Structure ◽  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Egg Predation ◽  
Murray River ◽  
Nesting Sites ◽  
Chelodina Longicollis

Regular inspection of tortoise nesting sites along the Murray River in South Australia showed that over 96% of eggs were taken by predators. Endemic predators accounted for less than 3% of this total. Foxes took the rest. Comparison of the age structure of the Emydura species in the Murray and Cooper Creek revealed that the populations were very different. The Murray population of Emydura rnacquarii contained a disproportionately large number of old individuals; this difference was attributed to egg losses. The same was true for Chelodina longicollis. As these old animals die recruitment of juveniles into the population will probably fall even further. As a result tortoise populations in the Murray will decline.

Ecological and physiological impacts of salinisation on freshwater turtles of the lower Murray River

2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (8) ◽  
pp. 705 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah S. Bower ◽  
Clare E. Death ◽  
Arthur Georges
Keyword(s):  
Saline Lake ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Freshwater Turtle ◽  
Plasma Sodium ◽  
Freshwater Species ◽  
Freshwater Turtles ◽  
Brackish Lake ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Murray River ◽  
Chelodina Longicollis

Context The increasing intensity and extent of anthropogenically mediated salinisation in freshwater systems has the potential to affect freshwater species through physiological and ecological processes. Determining responses to salinisation is critical to predicting impacts on fauna. Aims We aimed to quantify the response of wild-caught turtles from freshwater lakes that had become saline in the lower Murray River catchment. Methods Plasma electrolytes of all three species of freshwater turtle from South Australia were compared among two freshwater sites (Horseshoe Lagoon and Swan Reach), a brackish lake (Lake Bonney) and a saline lake (Lake Alexandrina). Key results Chelodina longicollis, C. expansa and Emydura macquarii from a brackish lake had higher concentrations of plasma sodium and chloride than those from freshwater habitats. However, osmolytes known to increase under severe osmotic stress (urea and uric acid) were not elevated in brackish sites. Turtles from the highly saline lake were colonised by an invasive marine worm which encased the carapace and inhibited limb movement. Conclusions Freshwater turtles in brackish backwaters had little response to salinity, whereas the C. longicollis in a saline lake had a significant physiological response caused by salt and further impacts from colonisation of marine worms. Implications Short periods of high salinity are unlikely to adversely affect freshwater turtles. However, secondary ecological processes, such as immobilisation from a marine worm may cause unexpected impacts on freshwater fauna.

Possible Causes of Mortality in The Yellow-Footed Rock-wallaby, Petrogale xanthopus Gray (Marsupialia: Macropodidae).

1996 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 245
Author(s):  
P. Hornsby
Keyword(s):  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
South Australia ◽  
The North ◽  
Flinders Ranges ◽  
Causes Of Mortality ◽  
Time Of Year

The causes of mortality were analysed for 23 Yellow-footed Rock-wallabies, Petrogale xanthopus found on or near the dry bed of the Hamilton Creek in the North Flinders Ranges of South Australia. The results showed the Red Fox, Vulpes vulpes to be the more frequently identified predator. On the basis of size, 13 of the wallabies were classed as adult and seven were immature, while the remaining three were unknown. Three were male; seven were female, and 13 were of unknown sex. 15 of the 23 were found during the period April - July; the time of year when there is a peak of young leaving the pouch.

The diet of the feral cat (Felis catus), red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and dog (Canis familiaris) over a three-year period at Witchelina Reserve, in arid South Australia

2018 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 204 ◽  
Author(s):  
John C. Z. Woinarski ◽  
Sally L. South ◽  
Paul Drummond ◽  
Gregory R. Johnston ◽  
Alex Nankivell
Keyword(s):  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Canis Familiaris ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Felis Catus ◽  
Feral Cats ◽  
Significant Seasonal Variation ◽  
Introduced Predators ◽  
Pogona Vitticeps ◽  
First Time

Introduced predators have had, and continue to have, severe impacts on Australian biodiversity. At a recently established conservation reserve, Witchelina, in arid South Australia, we assessed the diet of feral cats (Felis catus) (404 samples), red fox (Vulpes vulpes) (51 samples) and dog (Canis familiaris) (11 samples) over a 3-year period. There was marked overlap (98.5%) in dietary composition between cats and foxes. Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) comprised a major dietary item for all three predators. Invertebrates contributed the largest number of prey items for foxes and cats, but mammals comprised the bulk, by weight, for all three predators. Birds and reptiles had a higher frequency of occurrence in the diet of cats than of foxes or dogs. The size of mammal prey taken was least for cats and greatest for dogs. The diets of cats and foxes showed significant seasonal variation, with reptiles and invertebrates being least common in the diet in winter. The threatened thick-billed grasswren (Amytornis modestus) was found for the first time in the diet of feral cats. Bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps) occurred in about one-third of cat and fox samples. This study contributes further to the evidence of biodiversity impacts of introduced predators, and the need for their strategic management.

Age Structure of a Red Fox ( Vulpes Vulpes ) Sample from Egypt

2015 ◽  
Vol 60 ◽  
pp. 347-353
Author(s):  
Mahmoud I. Younes ◽  
Ali E. Basuony
Keyword(s):  
Age Structure ◽  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox

Primary osteoblast culture from red fox (Vulpes Vulpes)

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ines Pedro Perpetuo ◽  
Alessandro Felder ◽  
Andrew Pitsillides ◽  
Michael Doube ◽  
Isabel Orriss
Keyword(s):  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Primary Osteoblast ◽  
Osteoblast Culture

Diet of the introduced red fox Vulpes vulpes in Australia: analysis of temporal and spatial patterns

Mammal Review ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia A. Fleming ◽  
Heather M. Crawford ◽  
Alyson M. Stobo‐Wilson ◽  
Stuart J. Dawson ◽  
Christopher R. Dickman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Patterns ◽  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Temporal And Spatial Patterns ◽  
Temporal And Spatial

The Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes ) as an Accumulator of Bones in Cave-like Environments

2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 459-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Krajcarz ◽  
Maciej Tomasz Krajcarz
Keyword(s):  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox

Home Range Defense in the Red Fox, Vulpes vulpes L.

1975 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 645-652 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. M. Preston
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Red Fox

Variation in fur farm and wild populations of the red fox, Vulpes vulpes (Carnivora: Canidae) — Part I: Morphometry

2016 ◽  
Vol 96 (4) ◽  
pp. 589-597 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Zatoń-Dobrowolska ◽  
Magdalena Moska ◽  
Anna Mucha ◽  
Heliodor Wierzbicki ◽  
Piotr Przysiecki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vulpes Vulpes ◽  
Selective Breeding ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Tail Length ◽  
Morphometric Traits ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Ear Height ◽  
Morphological Differences ◽  
The Right ◽  
Almost All

This paper demonstrates the influence of artificial selection on morphometric traits in the red fox [Vulpes vulpes (Linnaeus, 1758)]. Measurements and two proportion coefficients were analysed in 132 wild and 199 farm red foxes. The two groups differed significantly (P ≤ 0.05) on all but one of the measurements. Eight out of 11 measurements were significantly greater in the farm fox population, while only tail length, ear height, and length of the right hind limb were greater in the population of wild foxes. The opposite trend was observed when analysing variation in the measurements — the farm foxes were characterized by a greater variability only in the case of body weight, body length, and breadth of chest. When analysing the sexual dimorphism index in different sex and population groups, in almost all analysed traits, the greatest differences occurred between farm males and wild females. All of the traits examined in this study are important for survival of wild foxes. However, because importance of some traits was reduced during domestication and selective breeding (farm foxes do not have to fight for survival), the genetic relationship between them may have weakened. Other possible causes of morphological differences between the studied groups of red foxes are discussed as well.

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