Home ranges in red fox: territoriality diminishes with increasing area

• Autorzy: Goszczynski J.
• Języki publikacji: EN

Abstrakty

EN

Red fox Vulpes vulpes (Linnaeus, 1758) are generally regarded as strictly territorial animals, inhabiting distinct and well-separated ranges. The home ranges of these predators can vary in size from a few dozen hectares to as much as 20-30 km2. Because it seemed impossible that foxes could defend areas so different in size with the same intensity, the published data were analysed in order to see how changes in home range size could affect the following parameters: home range overlap, the area visited daily and the distance travelled by animals during 24 h. It was found that the overlap between fox families (groups) occupying large ranges was much greater than between foxes living in small ranges. The ratio of the area visited daily to the seasonal home range size was greater in small ranges than in large ones. No significant correlation was found between the mean distance moved daily and home range size (r = -0.118, p = 0.75). These results suggest different patterns of the use of space and differences in territorial defence by red foxes inhabiting large and small ranges. The implications of home range overlap and intensity of contacts between foxes occupying neighbouring ranges for the spread of disease are discussed. The significant overlap between large ranges found in this paper is discussed in the light of Andrzejewski's (2002) home range concept.

Słowa kluczowe

EN

red fox; home range size; Vulpes vulpes; territoriality; overlap; fox

• Wydawca: -
• Czasopismo: Acta Theriologica. Supplement
• Rocznik: 2002
• Tom: 47
• Numer: 1
• Opis fizyczny: p.103-114,ref.

Twórcy

autor

Goszczynski J.

• Polish Academy of Sciences, Wilcza 64, 00-679 Warsaw, Poland

Bibliografia

• Ables E. D. 1969. Home-range studies of red foxes (Vuples vulpes). Journal of Mammalogy 50: 108-120.
• Adkins C. A. and Stott P. 1998. Home ranges, movements and habitat associations of red fox Vulpes
• vulpes in suburban Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Journal of Zoology, London 244: 335-346.
• Andrzejewski R. 2002. Home range concept in rodents revised. [In: Theriology at the turn of a new century. J. Gliwicz, ed]. Acta Theriologica 47, Suppl. 1: 81-101.Artois M. 1985. Utilisation de l'espace et du temps chez le renard (Vulpes vulpes) et le chat forestier (Felis silvestris) en Lorraine. Gibier Faune Sauvage 3: 33-57.
• Artois M., Aubert M. and Stahl P. 1990. Organization spatial du renard roux (Vulpes vulpes L., 1758) en zone d'enzootie de rage en Lorraine. [In: Ecologie de la rage et comportements de transmission du virus: contribution a l'etude des rapports entre le renard (Vulpes vulpes Linnaeus 1758) en Lorraine. M. Artois]. PhD thesis, University of Nancy, Nancy: 159-174.
• Bekoff M. and Wells M. C. 1980. The social ecology of coyotes. Scientific American 242: 130-148.
• Blanco J. C. 1986. On the diet, size and use of home range and activity patterns of the red fox in central Spain. Acta Theriologica 31: 547-556.
• Boitani L., Barrasso P. and Grimod I. 1984. Ranging behaviour of the red fox in the Gran Paradiso National Park. Bollettino di Zoologia 51: 275-284.
• Cavallini P. 1992. Ranging behavior of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in rural southern Japan. Journal of Mammalogy 73: 321-325.
• Cavallini P. 1996a. Variation in the social system of the red fox. Ethology, Ecology & Evolution 8: 323-342.
• Cavallini P. 1996b. Ranging behaviour of red foxes during the mating and breeding seasons. Ethology, Ecology & Evolution 8: 57-65.
• Doncaster C. P. and Macdonald D. W. 1991. Drifting territoriality in the red fox Vulpes vulpes. Journal of Animal Ecology 60: 423-439.
• Doncaster C. D. and Macdonald D. W. 1997. Activity patterns, and interactions of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Oxford city. Journal of Zoology, London 241: 73-87.
• Eguchi K. and Nakazono T. 1980. Activity studies of Japanese red foxes, Vulpes vulpes japonica Gray. The Japanese Journal of Ecology 30: 9-17.
• Gittleman J. K. 1993. Carnivore life histories: a re-analysis in the light of new models. Symposia of the Zoological Society of London 65: 65-86.
• Gittleman J. L. and Harvey P. M. 1982. Carnivore home-range size, metabolic needs and ecology. Behavioural Ecology and Sociobiology 10: 57-63.
• Goszczyński J. 1986a. Diet of foxes and martens in Central Poland. Acta Theriologica 31: 491-506.
• Goszczyński J. 1986b. Locomotor activity of terrestrial predators and its consequences. Acta Theriologica 31: 79-95.
• Goszczyński J. 1989. Spatial distribution of foxes Vulpes vulpes (Linnaeus, 1758) in winter season. Acta Theriologica 34: 361-372.
• Goszczyński J. 1990. Scent marking by red foxes in Central Poland during the winter season. Acta Theriologica 35: 7-16.
• Halpin M. A. and Bissonette J. A. 1988. Influence of snow depth on prey availability and habitat use by red fox. Canadian Journal of Zoology 66: 587-592.
• Harris S. 1980. Home ranges and patterns of distribution of foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in an urban area, as revealed by radio tracking. [In: Handbook of biotelemetry and radio tracking. C. J. Amlaner and D. W. Macdonald, eds]. Pergamon Press, Oxford: 685-690.
• Harris S., Cresswell W. J., Forde P. G., Trewhella W. J., Woollard T. and Wray S. 1990. Home-range analysis using radio-tracking data - a review of problems and techniques particularly as applied to the study of mammals. Mammal Review 20: 97-123.
• Harrison D. J., Bissonette J. A. and Sherburne J. A. 1989. Spatial relationships between coyotes and red foxes in eastern Maine. The Journal of Wildlife Management 53: 181-185.
• Henry J. D. 1977. The use of urine marking in the scavenging behavior of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes). Behaviour 61: 82-106.
• Hersteinsson P. and Macdonald D. W. 1982. Some comparisons between red and arctic foxes, Vulpes vulpes and Alopex lagopus, as revealed by radio tracking. Symposia of the Zoological Society of London 49: 259-289.
• Johnson D. H. and Sargeant A. B. 1977. Impact of red fox predation on sex ratio of prairie mallards. United States Department of the Interior. Fish and Wildlife Service. Wildlife Research Report 6: 1-56.
• Jones D. M. and Theberge J. B. 1982. Summer home range and habitat utilisation of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in a tundra habitat, northwest British Columbia. Canadian Journal of Zoology 60: 807-812.
• Keenan R. J. 1981. Spatial use of home range among red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in south-central Ontario. [In: Proceedings of the Worldwide Furbearer Conference, Frostburg, Maryland, USA, 1980. J. A. Chapman and D. Pursley, eds]. University of Maryland Press, Maryland: 1041-1061.
• Korytin S. A. 1968. Winter ecology of the red fox in Kirov district. Byulleten' Moskovskogo Obchestva IspitateleG Prirody (Otdel BiologicheskiG) 73: 33-44. [In Russian with English summary]
• Korytin S. A. 1979. [Behaviour and olfaction in carnivores]. Izdatelstvo Moskovskogo Zapovednika. Moskva: 1-224. [In Russian]
• Kruuk H. and Macdonald D. W. 1985. Group territories of carnivores: empires and enclaves. [In: Behavioural ecology: Ecological consequences of adaptive behaviour. R. M. Sibly and R. H. Smith, eds]. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford: 521-536.
• Laundre J. W. and Keller B. L. 1984. Home range of coyotes: a critical review. The Journal of Wildlife Management 48: 127-139.
• Lindstrom E. 1989. Food limitation and social regulation in a red fox population. Holarctic Ecology 12: 70-79.
• Lloyd H. G. 1980. The red fox. B. T. Batsford ltd., London: 1-320.
• Macdonald D. W. 1977. The behavioural ecology of the red fox Vulpes vulpes: a study of social organization and resource exploitation. PhD thesis, University of Oxford, Oxford: 1-498.
• Macdonald D. W. 1980. Patterns of scent marking with urine and feaces amongst carnivore com­munities. Symposia of the Zoological Society of London 45: 107-139.
• Macdonald D. W. 1981. Resource dispersion and social organization of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes). [In: Proceedings of the Worldwide Furbearer Conference, Frostburg, Maryland, USA, 1980. J. A. Chapman and D. Pursley, eds]. University of Maryland Press, Maryland: 918-949.
• Mech L. D. 1970. The wolf: the ecology and behavior of an endangered species. Natural History Press, Garden City, New York: 1-389.
• Meia J.-S. and Weber J.-M. 1995. Home range and movements of the red foxes in central Europe: stability despite environmental changes. Canadian Journal of Zoology 73: 1960-1966.
• Meia J.-S. and Weber J.-M. 1996. Social organization of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in the Swiss Jura Mountains. Zeitschrift fur Sáugetierkunde 61: 257-268.
• Mills L. S. and Knowlton F. F. 1991. Coyote space use in relation to prey abundance. Canadian Journal of Zoology 65: 1516-1521.
• Mohr C. O. 1947. Table of equivalent populations of North American small mammals. The American Midland Naturalist 37: 223-249.
• Mulder J. L. 1985. Spatial organization, movement and dispersal in a Dutch red fox (Vulpes vulpes) population: some preliminary results. Revue d'Ecologie (Terre et la Vie) 40: 133-138.
• Nasimovich A. A. and Isakov Yu. A. 1985. [The arctic fox, red fox and raccoon dog]. Nauka, Moskva: 1-160. [In Russian]
• Niewold F. J. J. 1980. Aspects of the social structure of red fox populations: a summary. Biogeo- graphica 18: 185-193.
• Okarma H. 1995. The trophic ecology of wolves and their predatory role in ungulate communities of forest ecosystem in Europe. Acta Theriologica 40: 335-386.
• Pils C. M. and Martin M. A. 1978. Population dynamics, predator-prey relationships and management of the red fox in Wisconsin. Technical Bulletin No. 105. Department of Natural Resources, Madison, Wisconsin: 1-57.
• Poulle M. L., Artois M. and Roeder J. J. 1994. Dynamics of spatial relationships among members of fox group (Vulpes vulpes: Mammalia: Carnivora). Journal of Zoology, London 233: 93-106.
• Priklonsky S. G. 1975. [Factors affecting daily distance travelled by a fox]. Trudy Okskogo Gosu- darstvennogo Zapovednika 9: 340-366. [In Russian]
• Sargeant A. B. 1972. Red fox spatial characteristics in relation to waterfowl predation. The Journal of Wildlife Management 36: 225-236.Sargeant A. B., Allen S. H. and Hastings J. O. 1987. Spatial relations between sympatric coyotes and red foxes in north Dakota. The Journal of Wildlife Management 51: 285-293.
• Saunders G., White C. L., Harris S. and Rayner J. M. V. 1993. Urban foxes (Vulpes vulpes): food acquisition, time and energy budgeting of a generalizated predator. Symposia of the Zoological Society of London 65: 215-234.
• Schofield R. D. 1960. A thousand miles of red fox trails in Michigan's ruffed grouse range. The Journal of Wildlife Management 24: 432-434.
• Scott T. G. 1943. Some food coactions of the northern plains red fox. Ecological Monographs 13: 427-479.
• Sempere A. 1979. Utilisation et evolution du domaine vital chez le chevreuil male europeen determine par radiotracking. Biology of Behaviour 1: 75-87.
• Sequeira D. M. 1980. Comparison of the diet of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes L., 1758) in Gelderland (Holland), Denmark and Finish Lapland. Biogeographica 18: 35-51.
• Servin J., Rau J. R. and Delibes M. 1991. Activity pattern of the red fox Vulpes vulpes in DoQana, SW Spain. Acta Theriologica 36: 369-373.
• Sheldon W. G. 1950. Denning habits and home range of red foxes in New York State. The Journal of Wildlife Management 14: 33-42.
• Takeuchi M. and Koganezawa M. 1992. Home range and habitat utilisation of the red fox Vulpes vulpes in the Ashio Mountains, Central Japan. Journal of Mammalogy. Society of Japan 17: 95-110.
• Travaini A., Aldama J. J., Laffitte R. and Delibes M. 1993. Home range and activity patterns of red fox Vulpes vulpes breeding females. Acta Theriologica 38: 427-434.
• Trewhella W. J., Harris A. and McAllister F. E. 1988. Dispersal distance, home range size and population density in the red fox (Vulpes vulpes): A quantitative analysis. Journal of Applied Ecology 25: 423-434.
• Voigt D. R. 1987. Red fox. [In: Wild furbearer management and conservation in North America. M. Novak, J. A. Baker, M. E. Obbard and B. Malloch, eds]. Ontario Trappers Associations, North Bay: 379-392.
• Voigt D. R. and Macdonald D. W. 1984. Variation in the spatial and social behaviour of the red fox, Vulpes vulpes. Acta Zoologica Fennica 171: 261-265.
• Voigt D. R. and Titline R. R. 1980. Strategies for analyzing radio tracking data. [In: Handbook of biotelemetry and radio tracking. C. J. Amlaner and D. W. Macdonald, eds]. Pergamon Press, Oxford: 387-404.
• von Schantz T. 1980. Prey consumption of a red fox population in southern Sweden. Biogeographica 18: 53-64.
• von Schantz T. 1984. Spacing strategies, kin selection, and population regulation in altricien vertebrates. Oikos 42: 48-58.
• White P. C. L. and Harris S. 1994. Encounters between red foxes (Vulpes vulpes): implications for territory maintenance, social cohesion and dispersal. Journal of Animal Ecology 63: 315-327.
• White P. C. L., Harris S. and Smith G. C. 1995. Fox contact behaviour and rabies spread: a model for the estimation of contact probabilities between urban foxes at different population densities and its implications for rabies control in Britain. Journal of Applied Ecology 32: 693-706.
• White P. C. L., Saunders G. and Harris S. 1996. Spatio-temporal patterns of home range use by foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in urban environments. Journal of Animal Ecology 65: 121-125.
• Zimen E. 1984. Long range movements of the red fox, Vulpes vulpes L. Acta Zoologica Fennica 171: 267-270.