- South American gray fox
-
South American gray fox[1] Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Family: Canidae Genus: Lycalopex Species: L. griseus Binomial name Lycalopex griseus
(Gray, 1837)Distribution of the South American gray fox Synonyms - L. gracilis (Burmeister, 1861)
The South American gray fox (Lycalopex griseus), also known as the Patagonian fox, the chilla, or the grey zorro, is a species of zorro, the "false" foxes.
Contents
Range and habitat
The South American gray fox is found in the Southern Cone of South America, particularly in Argentina and Chile. Its range comprises a stripe, both sides of the Andes Mountain Range between parallels 17ºS (northernmost Chile) and 54ºS (Tierra del Fuego).
In Argentina, this species inhabits the western semiarid region of the country, from the Andean spurs (ca. 69ºW) to meridian 66ºW. South from the Río Grande river, the distribution of the fox widens reaching the Atlantic coast. In Chile, it is present throughout the country. Its presence in Peru has been mentioned; to date, however, there has been no confirmation of it. The South American gray fox was introduced to the Falkland Islands in the late 1920s early 1930s and is still present in quite large numbers on Beaver and Weddell Islands plus several smaller islands.
The South American gray fox occurs in a variety of habitats, from the warm, arid scrublands of the Argentine Monte and the cold, arid Patagonian steppe to the forest of southernmost Chile.
Description
The South American gray fox is a small South American canid, weighing 2.5–4 kg (5–9 pounds), and measuring 43–70 cm (17–27 inches) in length.
Diet
Its diet consists mainly of rodents, birds, and rabbits.
Reproduction
It breeds in late austral fall, around March. After a gestation period of 2 months, 2-4 kits are born in a den. Not much else is recorded about its lifestyle.
References
- ^ Wozencraft, W. Christopher (16 November 2005). "Order Carnivora (pp. 532-628)". In Wilson, Don E., and Reeder, DeeAnn M., eds. Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2 vols. (2142 pp.). ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494. http://www.bucknell.edu/msw3/browse.asp?id=14000808.
- ^ Jiménez et al. (2008). Pseudalopex griseus. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 06 May 2008. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
- González del Solar, R. and J. Rau (2004) Pseudalopex griseus. In C. Sillero-Zubiri, M. Hoffman and D. Macdonald (eds.) Canids: Foxes, Wolves, Jackals and Dogs. Gland, Switzerland, IUCN/SSC Canid Specialist Group. Pp. 56–63. (Available at http://www.canids.org/species/Chilla.pdf)
- IUCN (2004): Canids: Foxes, Wolves, Jackals and Dogs
External links
- Funes, M. C., Novaro, A. J., Monsalvo, O. B., Pailacura, O., Sánchez Aldao, G., Pessino, M., Dosio, R., Chehébar, C., Ramilo, E., Bellati, J., Puig, S., Videla, F., Oporto, N., González del Solar, R., Castillo, E., García, E., Loekemeyer, N., Bugnest, F. and Mateazzi, G. (2006) El manejo de los zorros en la Argentina. Compatibilizando las interacciones entre la ganadería, la caza commercial y la conservación. In Bolkovik, M. L. and Ramadori, D. (eds.), Manejo de fauna silvestre en la Argentina. Programas de uso sustentable. Buenos Aires, Dirección de Fauna Silvestre. Chapter 12. (Available at http://www.canids.org/species/Funes%20et%20al%202006%20Manejo%20de%20zorros%20en%20Argentina.pdf)
- http://www.lioncrusher.com/animal.asp?animal=19
Categories:- IUCN Red List least concern species
- Foxes
- Mammals of Patagonia
- Mammals of Paraguay
- Mammals of Brazil
- Mammals of Chile
- Mammals of Argentina
- Mammals of Peru
- Mammals of Bolivia
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.