Fujairah Fauna: Blanford’s fox

March 31, 2021

Less than a minute

Blanford’s fox (Vulpes cana) is a small fox native to the Middle East and Central Asia.

Blanford’s fox is named after the English naturalist William Thomas Blanford, who described it in 1877. It is also known as the Afghan fox, royal fox, dog fox, hoary fox, steppe fox, black fox, king fox.

Diet

Blanford’s fox is omnivorous and primarily insectivorous and frugivorous. They also consume fruits and plant material of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera), Ochradenus baccatus, Fagonia mollis, and various species of Gramineae. Blanford’s foxes are almost always solitary foragers, only foraging in pairs on occasion. Unlike other fox species, it seldom caches food.

Habitat

Vulpes cana is found in semi-arid steppes and mountains. This species prefers areas with steep, rocky slopes, cliffs, and canyons. Historically, Blanford’s foxes were considered to avoid hot lowlands as well as cooler uplands.

However, they have been observed near the Dead Sea in Israel, where they are found in cultivated areas where melons, Russian chives, and seedless grapes are grown. Blanford’s foxes occur up to elevations of about 2000 meters. The most important habitat feature for Blanford’s foxes seems to be the presence of dry creek beds. Dens are chosen in areas with large rock piles. (Yom-Tov and Geffen, 1999)

Photo Taken by: Eszter Nagy in the Mountains of Fujairah.