Colonization of Warsaw by the red fox Vulpes vulpes in the years 1976–2019

Abstract

The red fox is one of the most adaptable carnivores inhabiting cities. The aim of our study was to describe the process of Warsaw colonization by the red fox. We focused on: (1) the fox distribution in Warsaw on the basis of presence-absence data (2005–2012) over a grid of 1 × 1 km2, (2) the process of settlement in 29 green areas (study periods 1976–1978, 2004–2012, and 2016–2019) in relation to habitat type, and (3) temporal and spatial patterns of the red fox incidents (1998–2015) reported by Warsaw citizens. We found out that: (1) the red fox penetrated the whole city (i.e. its presence was confirmed in all squares of the grid), (2) 21% of the green areas were colonized in 1976–1978 but 93% in 2016–2019. Forests and riparian habitats were occupied more frequently than parks and cemeteries in 1976–1978 with no difference in the further years; (3) the probability of the fox incidents increased over years, was higher in June-October, on working days, and around noon, and with the share of discontinuous urban fabric in the buffers around incident locations. Nevertheless, the incidents only partially reflect population abundance trends and activity patterns of the species, so should be treated cautiously.

Body Condition and Breeding of Urban Red Squirrels: Comparison of Two Populations Affected by Different Levels of Urbanization

“…Urban habitats differ from natural environments by their altered food availability, acoustic and light pollution, thermal conditions, or different sources and rates of mortality [ 4 , 6 , 7 ]. Nevertheless, many animal species adjust to urban conditions (e.g., [ 2 , 3 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ]) by changing their diet preference, home range size, or behaviour [ 6 ].…”

Understanding the distribution and fine-scale habitat selection of mesocarnivores along a habitat quality gradient in western Himalaya

“…We identified five habitat variables as potentially significant predictors where red fox ( McDonald et al, 2017 ; Sacks, Statham & Wittmer, 2017 ; O’Malley et al, 2018 ; Martin-Garcia et al, 2022 ) and leopard cat ( Bashir et al, 2014 ; McCarthy et al, 2015 ; Can et al, 2020 ) were likely to occur: elevation, slope, terrain ruggedness, NDVI and distance to woodland (riparian forests at hill base). Red fox preferred alpine meadows (high elevation, moderate slope), rugged terrain, and open and rocky areas (low NDVI) ( Weber & Meia, 1996 ; Murdoch et al, 2016 ; Kumar, Magar & Kumar Dhamala, 2019 ; Naseer et al, 2020 ), and grasslands at hill brow (away from woodland at hill base) ( Sacks, Statham & Wittmer, 2017 ; Rodríguez et al, 2020 ) in natural forests and used variety of habitats in anthropogenic areas ( Mueller, Drake & Allen, 2018 ; Jahren et al, 2020 ; Jackowiak et al, 2021 ). Hence, we expected red fox to show habitat selection towards high rugged, high elevation, moderate slope, low NDVI and away from woodlands inside the park and no habitat selection pattern in anthropogenic site.…”

Long-term, medium-term and acute stress response of urban populations of Eurasian red squirrels affected by different levels of human disturbance

“…Animals living in urban areas often encounter novel conditions, which may be potentially stressful, like changes in predation pressure, altered food resources, and new species interactions [2] or increased disturbance from people [3]. However, some animals can adapt and survive or even thrive in cities [4][5][6][7]. Since cities and their infrastructure are rapidly expanding [4], it is increasingly important to understand how wildlife cope with anthropogenic disturbance [8].…”