Feneco

Le petit fennec est parfaitement adapté à la vie dans les déserts arides de l'Afrique, où les températures diurnes sont tentatives de record, et des températures glaciales la nuit ne sont pas rares. Les semelles des pieds sont couverts par de longs poils doux qui protègent les pieds contre les températures extrêmes, et aider à la marche sur le sable lâche renard (2). Leurs grandes oreilles agissent comme des radiateurs et dissiper la chaleur (5), ainsi que de fournir une excellente ouïe avec laquelle pour détecter ses proies (2). Le fennec peut subsister sans eau pour une durée indéterminée, et survit par l'obtention de l'humidité par la nourriture, l'eau et la conservation en restant dans des terriers durant les jours chauds et de s'aventurer seul dans la nuit. Le pelage laineux aide à isoler le renard contre les nuits froides du désert, (2). Le fennec se met à trembler de froid lorsque la température descend en dessous de 20 degrés Celsius, mais incroyablement, ils ne commencent à haleter lorsque la température dépasse 35 degrés Celsius. Quand ils le font, leurs roquettes pantalon rythme respiratoire de 23 respirations par minute jusqu'à étonnantes que 690 respirations par minute (4). Fennecs sont monogames, et la paire vit avec leur progéniture dans une famille de dix personnes (2). Fennec renards s'accouplent en Janvier et Février, et les femelles donnent naissance en Mars et Avril (5). Habituellement une portée de deux à cinq oursons naissent chaque année, après une période de gestation d'environ 50 jours. Le mâle nourrit et défend le terrier (qui peut aller jusqu'à une dizaine de mètres de longueur) jusqu'à ce que les petits sont de quatre semaines. Ils sont sevrés à 61 à 70 jours et atteignent leur taille adulte et la maturité sexuelle après seulement 9 à 11 mois (2). En captivité, le fennec a été connus pour vivre pendant près de 13 ans (2). Fennecs se nourrissent principalement de sauterelles et les criquets, mais aussi manger d'autres insectes, les rongeurs, les oiseaux, les lézards et les racines. Ils chassent seuls et localiser leurs proies principalement par le son, tuant leur cible avec une morsure à la nuque (2).

mohamméd rabié :)

Le petit fennec est parfaitement adapté à la vie dans les déserts arides de l'Afrique, où les températures diurnes sont tentatives de record, et des températures glaciales la nuit ne sont pas rares. Les semelles des pieds sont couverts par de longs poils doux qui protègent les pieds contre les températures extrêmes, et aider à la marche sur le sable lâche renard (2). Leurs grandes oreilles agissent comme des radiateurs et dissiper la chaleur (5), ainsi que de fournir une excellente ouïe avec laquelle pour détecter ses proies (2). Le fennec peut subsister sans eau pour une durée indéterminée, et survit par l'obtention de l'humidité par la nourriture, l'eau et la conservation en restant dans des terriers durant les jours chauds et de s'aventurer seul dans la nuit. Le pelage laineux aide à isoler le renard contre les nuits froides du désert, (2). Le fennec se met à trembler de froid lorsque la température descend en dessous de 20 degrés Celsius, mais incroyablement, ils ne commencent à haleter lorsque la température dépasse 35 degrés Celsius. Quand ils le font, leurs roquettes pantalon rythme respiratoire de 23 respirations par minute jusqu'à étonnantes que 690 respirations par minute (4). Fennecs sont monogames, et la paire vit avec leur progéniture dans une famille de dix personnes (2). Fennec renards s'accouplent en Janvier et Février, et les femelles donnent naissance en Mars et Avril (5). Habituellement une portée de deux à cinq oursons naissent chaque année, après une période de gestation d'environ 50 jours. Le mâle nourrit et défend le terrier (qui peut aller jusqu'à une dizaine de mètres de longueur) jusqu'à ce que les petits sont de quatre semaines. Ils sont sevrés à 61 à 70 jours et atteignent leur taille adulte et la maturité sexuelle après seulement 9 à 11 mois (2). En captivité, le fennec a été connus pour vivre pendant près de 13 ans (2). Fennecs se nourrissent principalement de sauterelles et les criquets, mais aussi manger d'autres insectes, les rongeurs, les oiseaux, les lézards et les racines. Ils chassent seuls et localiser leurs proies principalement par le son, tuant leur cible avec une morsure à la nuque (2).

The fennec's name comes from the Arabic fanak, meaning fox; the species name zerda comes from the Greek xeros, meaning dry, due to the fox's habitat (Wikipedia). Scientists note re are similarities and differences between the fennec and other fox species, including physical and social traits. Vulpes zerda implies that the fennec is a true fox and Fennecus zerda implies that the fennec belongs to its own genus (Wikipedia). The fennec lacks the musk glands of other fox species and has only 32 chromosome pairs, while other fox species have between 35-39 (Wikipedia). The species also displays behaviours uncharacteristic of foxes, such as living in packs while most other fox species are solitary (Wikipedia).

The fennec is adapted to live in harsh, arid sandy deserts and semi-deserts and mountainous regions in northern Africa to northern Sinai; in Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Kuwait, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Sudan and Tunisia. References to fennec sightings in the United Arab Emirates were based on a Ruppell's fox in the Al Ain zoo (IUCN, Wikipedia); there are no confirmed records of the species in the Arabian Peninsula, but the fennec may occur to north Sahelian areas in the south (IUCN). The fennec prefers stable sand dunes, where it can burrow (ARKive, IUCN), but also lives in very sparsely vegetated sand dunes near the Atlantic coast (IUCN). It uses desert grasses and/or light scrub vegetation to bolster, shelter and line its dens.

The fennec is the smallest fox and weighs about 0.68–1.59 kg; vixens weigh about 0.8 kg and males weigh about 1.5 kg. It is 24-41 cm long with an 18-31 cm tail; it stands 18-22 cm tall at the shoulder. Its coat, ears, and kidney functions have adapted to high-temperature, low-water deserts with high daytime temperatures and freezing temperatures at night (Wikipedia). Long, soft hairs cover the soles of the feet, protecting the feet from extreme temperatures and helping the fox walk on loose sand (ARKive, AskNature). The fennec perceives its environment primarily through highly developed senses of hearing and smell (Animal Diversity Web). The massive ears are the largest among foxes relative to body size and serve to dissipate heat, as they have many blood vessels close to the skin (Wikipedia). The ears are sensitive enough to hear prey that may be underground; the soles of its feet are protected from the hot desert sand by thick fur. Information on fennec fox social behavior is mainly based on captive animals. They are about 10-15 cm long and act like radiators and dissipate hea, as they have many blood veseks t (Animal Diversity Web, ARKive, Wikipedia), as well as providing excellent hearing to detect prey moving under many centimtres of sand; the enlarged auditory bullae also serve this latter purpose (Animal Diversity Web). The ears can detect subtle differences between whines and whimpers in the calls of other fennecs and helps the fox to locate and avoid predators (Animal Diversity Web). The fennec has large, black eyes and the reflective tapetum layer in the retina enhances night vision and creates the illusion of glowing eyes. The small muzzle has a black rhinal pad and black whiskers. The coat is often a cream colour and fluffy, which . The long, soft, silky or fluffy, sandy, cream or buff coloured fur provides excellent camouflage in the desert, aiding stalking of prey and detection by predators; the coat colour deflects heat by day and keeps the fox warm at night (Wikipedia). The face is lighter with a dark streak extending from the inner eye down and outward to either side of the muzzle. The thick, bushy tail is redder, with a blackor dark brown tip and a black patch near the base. The slender legs of the fennec in North Africa are reddish sand, while foxes further south have almost white legs. The is white along the legs, face, ear-linings and underside. Juveniles are downy and almost exclusively white. The fur over the violet gland is black or dark brown. Dentition is weak, similar to that in bat-eared foxes; the carnassials are small (Animal Diversity Web).

The fennec can subsist without free water for an indefinite period, surviving by obtaining moisture through its food and conserving water by remaining in burrows during hot days and venturing out only at night (Animal Diversity Web, Wikipedia). Its kidneys are adapted to restrict water loss, while burrowing can cause the formation of dew (Wikipedia). It will drink water if available or eat vegetation as a handy source of water (Animal Diversity Web, Wikipedia). The thick, woolly fur helps insulate the fox against cold, desert nights. The fennec starts to tremble with cold when temperatures drop below 20 degrees Celsius, but only starts to pant when temperatures exceed 35 degrees Celsius. When it pants, its breathing rate rockets from 23 breaths a minute to 690 breaths a minute (ARKive). Fennec dens are designed for quick escape (Animal Divrsity Web). The fennec can jump up to 61 cm high and 120 cm forward to catch prey and escape predators (Wikipedia).

The fennec hunts alone and locates prey mainly by using its sensitive hearing to hear prey moving underground. It can seem to stare at the ground while it rotates its head from side to side to pinpoint the location of prey, underground or hidden above ground (Wikipedia). It obtains most of their food by digging and consumes any food available. It mainly eats grasshoppers, locusts and other insects, as well as rodents, rabbits and other small mammals, birds, eggs and lizards. It kills with a bite to the neck (ARKive). It also eats fruit, leaves and roots; it strips leaves off scrub vegetation. Vegetation provides almost 100% of the fox's hydration (Animal Diversity Web). There are reports that fennec foxes climb date palms while foraging for fruit; some experts consider this unlikely unless low branches are available for support (Wikipedia). Fennecs cache extra food (Animal Diversity Web). The main predators are eagle owls and possibly caracals, jackals, striped hyenas and the saluki, although fennecs are hard to capture (Wikipedia).

The fennec is monogamous; a pair mates for life (Wikipedia). Each pair or family controls its own territory (Wikipedia). The basic social unit of up to 10 individuals is thought to be a mated pair and their young; the young of the previous year are thought to stay remain in the family even after a new litter is born (Animal Diversity Web, ARKive, Wikipedia). Playing behaviour is common, including among adults (Animal Diversity Web, ARKive). Fennecs make various contact sounds, including barking, a purring sound similar to that of a domestic cat and a snarl if threatened. Captive animals engage in highly social behavior, typically resting with each other. In this social structure, each breeding couple (or family, as parents often enlist the aid of older siblings to care for cubs) has its own territory, bounded by urine and piles of faecal matter. Fennecs vigorously defenders of both territory and pups. Social rank is communicated mainly through play and via visual and tactile communication. Fennecs also comunicate via sound and via pheromones and scent marks (Animal Diversity Web). Families dig out dens in sand for habitation and protection, which can be 120 m2 and adjoin the dens of other families (Wikipedia). A typical den is dug in sand in open areas or places sheltered by plants with stable sand dunes. In compacted soils, dens can be up to 120 square metres, with up to 15 different entrances (Wikipedia). In some cases different families interconnect their dens, or locate them close together (Wikipedia). In soft, looser sand, dens tend to be simpler with only one entrance leading to a single chamber (Wikipedia).

Reproductive opportunity may be affected by social position, so that only dominant males pair with females (Animal Diversity Web). Males tend to show more aggression and urine-marking around the time of the females' estrous cycle. They have been seen to bury feces by pushing soil with their noses or hind feet when in captivity. Fennecs mate in January and February (Animal Diversity Web). The copulation tie lasts up to two hours and 45 minutes. Following mating, the male becomes very aggressive and protective of the female, providing her with food during her pregnancy and lactation periods (Wikipedia). Vixens stay in oestrus for a few days and give birth to 1-6 altricial cubs once a year in March and April, after a gestation period of 50-53 days (Animal Diversity Web, ARKive, Wikipedia), but up to 62-63 days in captivity (Wikipedia). Births can occur from March-July or year round in captivity (Wikipedia). The blind, helpless cubs weigh 26-50 g (Animal Diversity Web). The ears are folded over and the eyes are closed; the eyes open at around 10 days and the ears lift soon afterward (Wikipedia). The mother attends them in the den for the first 2 weeks, until their eyes open (Animal Diversity Web). The male provides food to the family and defends the burrow, which can be up to 10 metres long, until the cubs are four weeks old, when they begin to play within the den (Animal Diversity Web). At 5 weeks old, the cubs also play just outside the den entrance and the father watches for danger to playing cubs (Animal Diversity Web). Fennecs are very aggressive in defending their young; added protection for the cubs may be a reason to maintain community structure (Animal Divrsity Web). The cubs are weaned at 30-90 days and may be licked, carried and closely watched for up to 70 day (Animal Diversity Web) and become independent at 6 month, although they still associate with their parents (Animal Diversity Web). The cubs reach adult size and sexual maturity after 6-11 months (Animal Diversity Web, ARKive, Wikipedia). Fennecs can live up to 10 years in the wild and 16.3 years in captivity (AnAge, Animal Diversity Web, ARKive).

The fennec is listed as Least Concern and as a CITES Appendix II species. It is relatively widespread and common throughout the Sahara; no known major range-wide threats are believed to result in a population decline that would warrant listing in a threatened category (IUCN, Wikipedia). Sightings indicate that the animal is currently not threatened by extinction, but trade must be controlled to avoid utilization incompatible with their survival (Animal Diversity Web, ARKive, Wikipedia). Dogs and humans probably pose the greatest threat (ARKive). In northern Africa, the fennec is hunted, trapped and sold commercially (ARKive, IUCN, Wikipedia). It is captured for the pet trade and exhibition in zoos, sold to locals to be raised for meat or killed for its fur (Animal Diversity Web, ARKive, IUCN, Wikipedia). Breeders tend to remove the young kits from the mother to hand-rear, as owners prefer tamer and more handleable foxes, making them more expensive; the 'pet' fennec cannot be considered domesticated (Wikipedia). In southern Morocco, the meat is not eaten as it is considered to smell foul (Wikipedia). It is also killed by domestic dogs (ARKive). These threats have resulted in a fall in numbers in some populations in north-western Africa and new permanent human settlements, such as in southern Morocco, have led to fennecs disappearing from those areas (ARKive, IUCN). It is legally protected in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Egypt and occurs in several protected areas throughout its range, such as Bir El Abd Conservation Area in Egypt, and Aïr and Tenere National Reserve in Niger (ARKive, IUCN). The only documented regression concerns northern Moroccan Sahara, where the fennec disappeared in the 1960s from four localities, which were restricted sandy areas near permanent human settlements (IUCN). Fennecs breed in captivity. The fennec is Algeria's national animal and the nickname of its national football team (Wikipedia).