Influence of snow depth on prey availability and habitat use by red fox

1988 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 587-592 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret A. Halpin ◽  
John A. Bissonette
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Snow Depth ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Prey Availability ◽  
Habitat Preferences ◽  
Hardwood Forests ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Mixed Stands ◽  
Snow Conditions

Habitat use by red fox (Vulpes vulpes) was studied during the winters of 1982 and 1983. A total of 125 km of fox trails in eastern Maine were followed during periods of snow cover to examine the influence of snow conditions on fox habitat selection and prey availability. Red foxes used all available habitats but showed preferences for softwood stands and open areas. Hardwood forests were avoided. During both winters, snow depth was greatest in hardwood and mixed stands where soft, powdery conditions prevailed. Windblown, supportive crusts were found in open barrens. Foxes showed habitat preferences for traveling and hunting. Fox sinking depths were least in all habitats when crust conditions prevailed, and during these periods travel distances were more evenly distributed among habitats. Snow influenced relative prey availability. Hunting activities shifted among habitats for small mammals during most of the second winter, when snow was shallow. Proportions of small mammals in the fox diet decreased as snow accumulated and as crusts formed. When snow was deep, foxes hunted in habitats with softwood regeneration and other dense understories that supported snowshoe hare concentrations.

Food-niche overlap between arctic and red foxes

2002 ◽  
Vol 80 (7) ◽  
pp. 1274-1285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bodil Elmhagen ◽  
Magnus Tannerfeldt ◽  
Anders Angerbjörn
Keyword(s):  
Red Fox ◽  
Prey Availability ◽  
Interference Competition ◽  
Niche Overlap ◽  
Alopex Lagopus ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Mountain Tundra ◽  
Arctic Foxes ◽  
Food Niches ◽  
Food Niche

Arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) in Fennoscandia have retreated to higher altitudes on the mountain tundra, possibly because of increased competition with red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) at lower altitudes. In this study we compare summer food niches of the two species in mountain tundra habitat. Arctic foxes consumed lemmings more often than red foxes did, while red foxes consumed field voles and birds more often. Yet despite substantial variation in the diet of each species among summers, food-niche overlaps between the species were consistently high in most summers, as arctic and red foxes responded similarly to temporal changes in prey availability. Occurrences of field voles and birds in fox scats were negatively correlated with altitude, while the occurrences of lemmings tended to increase with altitude. Since arctic foxes bred at higher altitudes than red foxes, the differences between arctic and red fox diets were better explained by altitudinal segregation than by differences between their fundamental food niches. Arctic foxes should therefore endeavour to use the more productive hunting grounds at the lower altitudes of their former range, but interference competition with red foxes might decrease their access to these areas, and consequently cause a decrease in the size of in their realised niche.

scholarly journals A preliminary range-wide distribution model for the sacramento valley red fox

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
BN Sacks ◽  
MJ Statham ◽  
Heiko Wittmer
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Human Development ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Wide Distribution ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Distribution Model ◽  
Effective Population ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Sacramento Valley ◽  
Demographic Bottleneck

© 2017, Allen Press. All rights reserved. The Sacramento Valley red fox Vulpes vulpes patwin of California is a newly named subspecies recently found to be distinct both from other native red foxes and nearby introduced populations. The Sacramento Valley red fox experienced a historical demographic bottleneck resulting in a critically small genetic effective population size, causing concern over its current status and management requirements, yet little is known about its contemporary abundance, demographic trajectory, or habitat use. The hot, arid Sacramento Valley contrasts starkly in climate and physiography with the boreal habitats of other indigenous red foxes in western North America, indicating the need to obtain information specifically on the habitat requirements of this subspecies. A 3-y effort to locate reproductive den sites throughout the Sacramento Valley resulted in 42 independent dens, which we used to obtain preliminary information on habitat use and to develop a distribution model for this subspecies, and 28 Sacramento Valley red foxes killed by vehicles, which we used as independent data to test the models. Foxes were present significantly more than expected in grasslands and less than expected in wetlands and flooded agriculture and also tended to occur in proximity to human development, potentially as refuges from coyotes Canis latrans. We used Maxent to build predictive models. The best model, which incorporated vegetation/land-use classes and proximity to human development, identified 24% of the study area as predicted-presence habitat, which contained 76% of the den sites used to construct the model and 89% of independent locations used to test the model. Our model greatly narrowed the area over which foxes are predicted to occur and will facilitate future surveys to assess occupancy and ultimately abundance and population trends.

scholarly journals A preliminary range-wide distribution model for the sacramento valley red fox

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
BN Sacks ◽  
MJ Statham ◽  
Heiko Wittmer
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Human Development ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Wide Distribution ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Distribution Model ◽  
Effective Population ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Sacramento Valley ◽  
Demographic Bottleneck

© 2017, Allen Press. All rights reserved. The Sacramento Valley red fox Vulpes vulpes patwin of California is a newly named subspecies recently found to be distinct both from other native red foxes and nearby introduced populations. The Sacramento Valley red fox experienced a historical demographic bottleneck resulting in a critically small genetic effective population size, causing concern over its current status and management requirements, yet little is known about its contemporary abundance, demographic trajectory, or habitat use. The hot, arid Sacramento Valley contrasts starkly in climate and physiography with the boreal habitats of other indigenous red foxes in western North America, indicating the need to obtain information specifically on the habitat requirements of this subspecies. A 3-y effort to locate reproductive den sites throughout the Sacramento Valley resulted in 42 independent dens, which we used to obtain preliminary information on habitat use and to develop a distribution model for this subspecies, and 28 Sacramento Valley red foxes killed by vehicles, which we used as independent data to test the models. Foxes were present significantly more than expected in grasslands and less than expected in wetlands and flooded agriculture and also tended to occur in proximity to human development, potentially as refuges from coyotes Canis latrans. We used Maxent to build predictive models. The best model, which incorporated vegetation/land-use classes and proximity to human development, identified 24% of the study area as predicted-presence habitat, which contained 76% of the den sites used to construct the model and 89% of independent locations used to test the model. Our model greatly narrowed the area over which foxes are predicted to occur and will facilitate future surveys to assess occupancy and ultimately abundance and population trends.

scholarly journals A Preliminary Range-Wide Distribution Model for the Sacramento Valley Red Fox

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin N. Sacks ◽  
Mark J. Statham ◽  
Heiko U. Wittmer
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Human Development ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Wide Distribution ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Distribution Model ◽  
Effective Population ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Sacramento Valley ◽  
Demographic Bottleneck

Abstract The Sacramento Valley red fox Vulpes vulpes patwin of California is a newly named subspecies recently found to be distinct both from other native red foxes and nearby introduced populations. The Sacramento Valley red fox experienced a historical demographic bottleneck resulting in a critically small genetic effective population size, causing concern over its current status and management requirements, yet little is known about its contemporary abundance, demographic trajectory, or habitat use. The hot, arid Sacramento Valley contrasts starkly in climate and physiography with the boreal habitats of other indigenous red foxes in western North America, indicating the need to obtain information specifically on the habitat requirements of this subspecies. A 3-y effort to locate reproductive den sites throughout the Sacramento Valley resulted in 42 independent dens, which we used to obtain preliminary information on habitat use and to develop a distribution model for this subspecies, and 28 Sacramento Valley red foxes killed by vehicles, which we used as independent data to test the models. Foxes were present significantly more than expected in grasslands and less than expected in wetlands and flooded agriculture and also tended to occur in proximity to human development, potentially as refuges from coyotes Canis latrans. We used Maxent to build predictive models. The best model, which incorporated vegetation/land-use classes and proximity to human development, identified 24% of the study area as predicted-presence habitat, which contained 76% of the den sites used to construct the model and 89% of independent locations used to test the model. Our model greatly narrowed the area over which foxes are predicted to occur and will facilitate future surveys to assess occupancy and ultimately abundance and population trends.

Potential remedy against Echinococcus multilocularis in wild red foxes using baits with anthelmintic distributed around fox breeding dens in Hokkaido, Japan

Parasitology ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 125 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. TSUKADA ◽  
K. HAMAZAKI ◽  
S. GANZORIG ◽  
T. IWAKI ◽  
K. KONNO ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Echinococcus Multilocularis ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Red Foxes ◽  
Clethrionomys Rufocanus ◽  
Efficient Control ◽  
Positive Rate ◽  
Potential Remedy ◽  
Patent Infection

The effect of bait-delivered anthelmintic to reduce the prevalence of Echinococcus multilocularis in wild red foxes was evaluated in Koshimizu, in the eastern part of Hokkaido, Japan. The study area (200 km2) was divided into baited and non-baited sections. The anthelmintic baits were distributed around fox den sites in the baited section every month for 13 months. After 1 year of the anthelmintic bait distribution, the prevalence of E. multilocularis in foxes, evaluated either by the parasite egg examination (from 27.1 to 5.6%) or coproantigen ELISA (from 59.6 to 29.7%), decreased in the baited section contrasting to that in the non-baited section (parasite egg: from 18.8 to 24.2%; ELISA: from 41.9 to 45.8%). The prevalence of E. multilocularis in grey red-backed vole Clethrionomys rufocanus, caught around fox dens, born after bait distribution also decreased and was significantly lower than that in non-baited section. However, within the study periods, the coproantigen-positive rate in fox faeces sporadically increased, while egg-positive rate constantly decreased. Since coproantigen ELISA can detect pre-patent infection, this observation indicates that reinfection pressure in the baited section was still high even after the 13 months of anthelmintic bait distribution. Therefore, the bait distribution longer than our study period is required for the efficient control of E. multilocularis in wild red fox population.

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.

Assisted colonisation trial of the eastern barred bandicoot (Perameles gunnii) to a fox-free island

2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (7) ◽  
pp. 484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Groenewegen ◽  
Dan Harley ◽  
Richard Hill ◽  
Graeme Coulson
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Red Fox ◽  
Suitable Habitat ◽  
Viable Option ◽  
Predator Exclusion ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Radio Transmitters ◽  
Release Group ◽  
Small Sites

Context Assisted colonisation has the potential to protect species from intractable threats within their historical ranges. The Australian mainland subspecies of the eastern barred bandicoot (Perameles gunnii) is extinct in the wild, with surviving populations restricted to small sites protected by predator–barrier fences. PVA modelling shows that a self-sustaining bandicoot population would require an area free of the introduced red fox (Vulpes vulpes) of at least 2500ha. French Island is outside the historic range of the species, but is fox-free and contains around 9000ha of potentially suitable habitat. Aims This study will assess the suitability of French Island as a potential site for a self-sustaining eastern barred bandicoot population by conducting a 1-year assisted colonisation trial to assess habitat use, body condition and survival. Methods Between July and September 2012, 18 adult bandicoots were released. We radio-tracked bandicoots using intraperitoneal radio-transmitters for up to 122 days and trapped fortnightly. Key results The release group met the three measures of success: (1) appropriate habitat use; (2) recovery of post-release bodyweight; and (3) founder survival exceeding 100 days. Habitat use and body condition throughout the trial reflected that of mainland populations, and seven bandicoots survived longer than 100 days. Mortality was greatest in the first month, with veterinary investigations confirming two deaths due to cat predation, two deaths from toxoplasmosis and one unknown cause of death. Bandicoots that survived longer than 100 days occupied higher, drier ground than those that did not. Toxoplasmosis cases were associated with lower topographic position on the site. Conclusions Our results suggest that French Island provides suitable habitat for the establishment of a population of eastern barred bandicoots. On French Island, toxoplasmosis was identified as an important source of mortality in addition to cat predation, and warrants further investigation. Implications Given the costs and challenges of predator control and the maintenance of predator exclusion fences, assisted colonisation to one or more fox-free islands remains the most viable option to establish self-sustaining bandicoot populations. Our results highlight the value in conducting trial releases ahead of major translocations.

Summer stream habitat preferences of Nunavik anadromous Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) fry and parr

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Véronique Dubos ◽  
André St-Hilaire ◽  
Normand E Bergeron
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Salvelinus Alpinus ◽  
Habitat Preferences ◽  
Arctic Region ◽  
Arctic Char ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Stream Habitat ◽  
Physical Habitat ◽  
High Plasticity ◽  
Slow Velocity

Arctic char is a fish species known to occupy diverse habitats within the Arctic region. However, summer habitat use during the juvenile stage of the anadromous form is largely unknown. The present study aims to characterize fry and parr summer habitat preferences. Surveys were conducted by electrofishing, associated with physical habitat characterization on several rivers of the Ungava Bay, Nunavik, Canada. At the microhabitat and station scales, fry showed significant habitat preferences for shallow water and slow velocity. At the mesohabitat scale, fry showed a significant habitat selectivity for riffles. This habitat selectivity implies that habitat models can be built to evaluate the potential of habitat suitability for Arctic char fry. However, no significant habitat selectivity was found for parr. Parr size was nonetheless positively correlated with velocity, which was found to be a limitative factor for juvenile habitat use. This first attempt at modeling juvenile anadromous Arctic char habitat in rivers emphasizes the importance of selecting an appropriate spatial scale and reiterates the fact that parr showed relatively high plasticity in stream habitat selection.

Critical snow density threshold for Dall’s sheep (Ovis dalli dalli)

2018 ◽  
Vol 96 (10) ◽  
pp. 1170-1177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly J. Sivy ◽  
Anne W. Nolin ◽  
Christopher L. Cosgrove ◽  
Laura R. Prugh
Keyword(s):  
Snow Depth ◽  
Animal Movement ◽  
Population Declines ◽  
Snow Density ◽  
Energetic Costs ◽  
Snow Properties ◽  
Ovis Dalli ◽  
Snow Conditions ◽  
Dall’S Sheep ◽  
Density Threshold

Snow cover can significantly impact animal movement and energetics, yet few studies have investigated the link between physical properties of snow and energetic costs. Quantification of thresholds in snow properties that influence animal movement are needed to help address this knowledge gap. Recent population declines of Dall’s sheep (Ovis dalli dalli Nelson, 1884) could be due in part to changing snow conditions. We examined the effect of snow density, snow depth, and snow hardness on sinking depths of Dall’s sheep tracks encountered in Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Snow depth was a poor predictor of sinking depths of sheep tracks (R2 = 0.02, p = 0.38), as was mean weighted hardness (R2 = 0.09, p = 0.07). Across competing models, top layer snow density (0–10 cm) and sheep age class were the best predictors of track sink depths (R2 = 0.58). Track sink depth decreased with increasing snow density, and the snowpack supported the mass of a sheep above a density threshold of 329 ± 18 kg/m3 (mean ± SE). This threshold could aid interpretation of winter movement and energetic costs by animals, thus improving our ability to predict consequences of changing snowpack conditions on wildlife.

scholarly journals Seasonal influence of snow conditions on Dall’s sheep productivity in Wrangell-St Elias National Park and Preserve

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. e0244787
Author(s):  
Christopher L. Cosgrove ◽  
Jeff Wells ◽  
Anne W. Nolin ◽  
Judy Putera ◽  
Laura R. Prugh
Keyword(s):  
Snow Depth ◽  
National Park ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Multiple Regression Model ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Population Declines ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Remote Cameras ◽  
Snow Conditions ◽  
Dall’S Sheep

Dall’s sheep (Ovis dalli dalli) are endemic to alpine areas of sub-Arctic and Arctic northwest America and are an ungulate species of high economic and cultural importance. Populations have historically experienced large fluctuations in size, and studies have linked population declines to decreased productivity as a consequence of late-spring snow cover. However, it is not known how the seasonality of snow accumulation and characteristics such as depth and density may affect Dall’s sheep productivity. We examined relationships between snow and climate conditions and summer lamb production in Wrangell-St Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska over a 37-year study period. To produce covariates pertaining to the quality of the snowpack, a spatially-explicit snow evolution model was forced with meteorological data from a gridded climate re-analysis from 1980 to 2017 and calibrated with ground-based snow surveys and validated by snow depth data from remote cameras. The best calibrated model produced an RMSE of 0.08 m (bias 0.06 m) for snow depth compared to the remote camera data. Observed lamb-to-ewe ratios from 19 summers of survey data were regressed against seasonally aggregated modelled snow and climate properties from the preceding snow season. We found that a multiple regression model of fall snow depth and fall air temperature explained 41% of the variance in lamb-to-ewe ratios (R2 = .41, F(2,38) = 14.89, p<0.001), with decreased lamb production following deep snow conditions and colder fall temperatures. Our results suggest the early establishment and persistence of challenging snow conditions is more important than snow conditions immediately prior to and during lambing. These findings may help wildlife managers to better anticipate Dall’s sheep recruitment dynamics.

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