Factors affecting the diet of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in a heterogeneousMediterranean landscape

Abstract

The diet of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) has been well studied in Europe, but limited information exists about its feeding habits in Greece and in other Mediterranean landscapes. We studied the diet variation of the red fox by analyzing contents from 219 red fox stomachs in central Greece from 2003 to 2005. We used canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) and quasi-distribution generalized linear model (GLM) response curves to investigate whether the trophic groups of the red fox diet varied temporally and/or spatially with environmental factors. Mammals, arthropods, and plants were the most important trophic groups in the diet; in particular, the European brown hare (Lepus europaeus) was consumed significantly more within hunting areas. The CCA produced a significant model for the response (trophic groups) and predictor datasets (environmental, spatial, and temporal variables). In addition, GLM response curves resulted in 13 best-fitted complexity models, which were evaluated with the Akaike information criterion. The results demonstrated 4 basic predation patterns. First, the red fox showed an opportunistic exploitation of food resources according to seasonal appearance, with temporal gradients being the main drivers affecting predation. Second, the red fox had a generalist diet, consuming cold-blooded vertebrates, arthropods, birds, and small-sized carnivores in a highly seasonal way. Third, the diet showed uniform predation on small mammals in all habitat types during the study. Finally, the red fox relies on hares within hunting areas, irrespective of habitat type or temporal gradients. Additional and long-term studies are needed to understand in depth the mechanisms involved in those observed high predation rates on hares.

Spatial Segregation between Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes), European Wildcats (Felis silvestris) and Domestic Cats (Felis catus) in Pastures in a Livestock Area of Northern Spain

“…The red foxes in our study used the pasture fields in a more random manner, probably related to prey availability rather than any other factors [40]. Following the same reasoning, European wildcats and domestic cats would behave in a manner intended to decrease intraguild interactions that could lead to dangerous encounters with red foxes, as foxes are larger and there have been reports of attacks by red foxes on cats and traces of wildcats have been found in the fox diet [25,30,32]. In 2019, we also observed and recorded two red foxes chasing and biting a European wildcat in a pasture field, with the cat able to reach a refuge area in a nearby forest.…”

“…Therefore, one would expect strong resource competition between the three carnivores. Red foxes are larger than both cat species and have been observed to attack domestic cats, with samples of European wildcats and domestic cats having been found in the red fox diet [25,29,30]. Domestic cats have also been observed far from farmhouses when red foxes are absent, but stay close when they are present [31].…”

Macroanatomical Investigation of the Plexus Brachialis in the Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)

“…In addition, they sometimes eat fruit. This type of diet contributes to the environmental balance (Bakaloudis et al, 2015;Sidorovich et al, 2006).…”