First record of Blanford’s Fox Vulpes cana (Blanford, 1877) from Iraq

The Blanford’s Fox Vulpes cana (Blanford, 1877) is an enigmatic carnivore of Asia and East Africa with sporadic and disjunct distribution in the Middle East. It was suspected to occur in western Iraq, but no confirmed records have been made. In October 2020, the first confirmed occurrence of Blanford’s Fox was made during a camera-trap survey in Xoshk Mountain in northern Iraq (Kurdistan) and is described in this account.

New record of Blanford’s Fox Vulpes cana (Mammalia: Carnivora: Canidae) in central Oman: a connection between the northern and southern populations

The Blanford’s Fox Vulpes cana is known to be distributed in the Hajar Mountains and the mountains of Dhofar in northern and southern Oman, respectively. We report the first record of the Blanford’s Fox in Al Wusta Wildlife Reserve in central Oman. Despite a large survey effort of 169 camera traps set for 53,524 trap nights in an area of 5,400km2, only two camera traps detected Blanford’s Fox in a small area covering 46km2. The survey suggests that the population is small and possibly isolated, as the northern and southern Blanford’s Fox populations are 310km and 330km away, respectively.

Distribution and morphometric measurements of Blanford’s Fox Vulpes cana (Mammalia: Carnivora: Canidae) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

A study on Blanford’s Fox was conducted from Tabuk Province, a poorly studied area of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), from December 2015 until May 2016. This study adds to our knowledge, where two survey methods were used, which are the live trapping and camera trapping methods. Five specimens were captured alive, in addition to a dead specimen reported during the survey period. Measurements of live, captured specimens were obtained and the skull of the dead specimen was measured. The information provided will serve as a basis for future monitoring of Blanford’s Fox in Saudi Arabia, and it will provide the foundation for future research in the species’ range of occurrence in the Arabian Peninsula. In addition, more attention shall be paid to establish a joint collaboration between scholars from Saudi Arabia and Jordan to assess the status of Blanford’s Fox along the sandstone escarpments Hisma plateau.

Biotope and distribution of Blanford's fox

Blanford's fox Vulpes cana has been considered as one of the rarest mammals in south-west Asia. Recently it has been discovered in several locations in the Middle East. The authors conducted a survey of Blanford's foxes in the mountainous desert regions of Israel and found that they are common in Israel, but restricted to a specific habitat. Additional surveys in other Middle Eastern countries are essential for the conservation of this species.