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The Cape fox (''Vulpes chama''), also called the asse, cama fox or the silver-backed fox, is a small species of
fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelv ...
, native to southern Africa. It is also called a South African version of a
fennec fox The fennec fox (''Vulpes zerda'') is a small crepuscular fox native to the deserts of North Africa, ranging from Western Sahara to the Sinai Peninsula. Its most distinctive feature is its unusually large ears, which serve to dissipate heat and l ...
due to its similarly big ears. It is the only "true fox" occurring in sub-Saharan Africa, and it retains primitive characteristics of ''
Vulpes '' Vulpes '' is a genus of the sub-family Caninae. The members of this genus are colloquially referred to as true foxes, meaning they form a proper clade. The word "fox" occurs in the common names of all species of the genus, but also appea ...
'' because it diverged early in the evolutionary history of the group.


Description

''Vulpes chama'' is a small-built canid, usually measuring long, not including its tail, which is typically . It is tall at the shoulder, and usually weighs from . The skull is very similar to that of '' V. bengalensis'', although the cranium of ''V. chama'' is slightly wider and the maxillary region is slightly shorter. The ears are relatively large and sharp, the muzzle is small and pointed. Pelage colour is silvery-gray, tawny at the back of the ears, with white hairs appearing around the side of the pinna in the center. The colour of the neck and sides is lighter, and the underparts are pale tawny to pale buff. The head is dull red and the lower jaw is dark brown. There are white marks on the throat. The legs are more tawny than the rest of the body. The tail is dense and bushy, and can be silvery, pale fawn, buff with brown or black tips, or dull yellow. The tail tip is always black, and there's a dark spot over the caudal gland. Pelage is soft and composed of a thick wavy underfur of around 25 mm in length. Underfur is covered with a dense layer of guard hair < 40 mm in thickness. Molt occurs in the wet season from October to November. ''V. chama'' presents little to no
sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most an ...
.


Distribution and habitat

Cape fox is the only species in the genus ''Vulpes'' that exists in Africa south of the equator. It primarily occupies arid and semi-arid areas, but in sections, such as the fynbos biome of the western Cape Province of South Africa, the species reaches areas of higher rainfall and denser vegetation. In the central and western regions of southern Africa, the species is widespread, reaching around 15 ° N in south-western Angola. It is widespread in
Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
,
Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kal ...
, and
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...
, occurring in most parts of the Western and Northern Cape provinces, the Eastern Cape (excluding the southeastern side), the Free State, western and northwestern KwaZulu-Natal and the North-West province. It also occurs in
Lesotho Lesotho ( ), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country landlocked as an enclave in South Africa. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the highest mountains in Southern Africa. It has an area of over and has a populatio ...
, a high mountainous region.


Behavior

The Cape fox is
nocturnal Nocturnality is an ethology, animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have ...
and most active just before dawn or after dusk; it can be spotted during the early mornings and early evenings. During the day, it typically shelters in
burrow An Eastern chipmunk at the entrance of its burrow A burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to construct a space suitable for habitation or temporary refuge, or as a byproduct of locomotion. Burrows provide a form of s ...
s underground, holes, hollows, or dense thickets. It is an active digger that will excavate its own burrow, although it generally modifies an abandoned burrow of another species, such as the springhare, to its specific requirements. Cape foxes are mostly solitary, and although they form mated pairs, the males and females are often found foraging alone. Occasionally, however, they can gather in loose groups to feed. Although ''V. chama'' shows signs of territoriality, such as scent marking, home range overlap does occur. Although a normally silent fox, the Cape fox is known to communicate with soft calls, whines or chirps. However, it will utter a loud bark when alarmed. A long-range vocalization of yelps or yapping barks has been described, but Cape foxes apparently do not howl. When in an aggressive mood, the Cape fox is known to growl and spit at its attacker. They may use other forms of communication, such as facial expressions and tail posturing; to show its excitement, the fox lifts its tail, the height of the tail often indicating the measure of excitement.


Ecology


Diet

Cape foxes are completely
omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nut ...
and opportunists, feeding mainly on small mammals (such as
rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are roden ...
s) and
insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...
s, but also commonly eating
bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...
s, small reptiles,
carrion Carrion () is the decaying flesh of dead animals, including human flesh. Overview Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eaters (or scavengers) include crows, vultures ...
and fruits. Other food items include: gerbils; field mice and other small rodents, hares, birds; bird nestlings and eggs, diverse vegetable material, including wild fruit, berries, seeds, roots, and tubers; lizards, insects, such as white ants, beetles and their larvae, and locusts. They may also consume larger mammals like steenbok (''Raphicerus campestris'') and other carnivores such as the yellow mongoose (''Cynictis penicillata''). While Cape foxes have been reported to kill livestock, the predation level is unknown.
Domestic sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticate ...
(''Ovis aries'') may comprise as much as 16.6% volume of its stomach content, but it appears to prey only on very young lambs (less than 3 months old), otherwise they can only consume it as carrion. They are known to cache food in holes.


Parasites and predators

The Cape fox can be hunted by
lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
s (''Panthera leo'') and its young may be killed by the
honey badger The honey badger (''Mellivora capensis''), also known as the ratel ( or ), is a mammal widely distributed in Africa, Southwest Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. Because of its wide range and occurrence in a variety of habitats, it is liste ...
(''Mellivora capensis''). It is also sometimes preyed upon by black-backed jackals (''Canis mesomelas'') and other predators, such as
African leopard The African leopard (''Panthera pardus pardus'') is the nominate subspecies of the leopard, native to many countries in Africa. It is widely distributed in most of sub-Saharan Africa, but the historical range has been fragmented in the course o ...
s (''Panthera pardus''),
caracal The caracal (''Caracal caracal'') () is a medium-sized wild cat native to Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and arid areas of Pakistan and northwestern India. It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long tufted e ...
s (''Caracal caracal''), and birds of prey, such as hawks and owls. It usually carries ''
Echinococcus granulosus ''Echinococcus granulosus,'' also called the hydatid worm, hyper tape-worm or dog tapeworm, is a cyclophyllid cestode that dwells in the small intestine of canids as an adult, but which has important intermediate hosts such as livestock and hu ...
'' as an endoparasite and may be parasitised by
fleas Flea, the common name for the order Siphonaptera, includes 2,500 species of small flightless insects that live as external parasites of mammals and birds. Fleas live by ingesting the blood of their hosts. Adult fleas grow to about long, a ...
.


Reproduction

During the breeding season, in southern hemisphere winter the months of July and August, monogamous pairs may occur, but the duration and persistence from year to year is not well known. Paired adults typically only have contact during the mating season, but mouth sniffing or nuzzling ("greeting") occurs, as does body slamming. The female Cape fox has a gestation period of 51 to 53 days and gives birth to a litter of one to six cubs (or kits). They typically weigh from at birth. Reared underground in burrows, the cubs stay close to the den until they are about four months old. Several females may also share simultaneously the same den. The cubs are weaned around six to eight weeks of age, but do not begin to forage until they are four months old and often play outside during daylight hours. Both parents care for the young, with the male also providing food to the female for at least 1–2 weeks postpartum. Cubs usually become independent at 5–11.5 months of age, when they disperse (typically in June or July). Juveniles may disperse 7–22 km from natal den and females may remain in their natal range. Some Cape fox subadults steal food brought to the kits at the den by the parents. A family group usually consists of the parents and their offspring, but different family groups sometimes mix during feeding. Multiple litters are possible and have been observed; however, the female usually chases out the cubs from the last litter when she is expecting another one. Cape foxes are fully grown within about a year, with both the female and the male reaching sexual maturity at 9 months. The Cape fox has a life expectancy of about six years, but can live for up to 10 years.


Conservation

Habitat loss doesn't appear to be a major factor influencing the conservation status of the Cape fox; in some regions, changing agricultural practices have resulted in range extensions for this species. As these foxes are presumed to prey on livestock, in particular lambs, they are commonly target by farmers. They are targeted by various control methods, such as leg-hold traps and the illegal but widespread use of agricultural poisons on commercial farms. These control measures do not seem to have had a major impact on populations of the Cape fox, even though they have resulted in declines in some areas. They also often succumb to diseases such as
rabies Rabies is a viral disease that causes encephalitis in humans and other mammals. Early symptoms can include fever and tingling at the site of exposure. These symptoms are followed by one or more of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, vio ...
and canine distemper, and a large number of Cape foxes are killed on the road by vehicles. Many are hunted and persecuted as vermin. About 2,500 individuals are killed yearly; which is approximately 16% of the population. Nonetheless, populations of ''V. chama'' are currently stable across their entire geographic range thus it is not listed in the
IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...
.


References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q272933 Cape fox Mammals of Botswana Mammals of South Africa Mammals of Namibia Mammals of Angola Mammals of Southern Africa Carnivorans of Africa Cape fox