This fox is a also known as the forest fox, wood fox, and bushdog (as apposed to the Bush dog which we have encountered already).
Crab-eating fox
Like other foxes in south America it is not a true fox. It lives in anges in savannas; woodlands; subtropical forests; prickly, shrubby thickets; and tropical savannas such as the caatinga, plains, and campo, from Colombia and southern Venezuela in the north to Paraguay, Uruguay and northern Argentina at the southernmost reaches of its range. Its habitat also includes wooded riverbanks such as riparian forest. In the rainy season, their range moves uphill, whilst in drier times they move to lower ground.[13] Their habitat covers all environments except rainforests, high mountains, and open grassy savannas. In some regions of their range, they are threatened with extirpation.
Looking, at first glance, like a fox on stilts, it is found in Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, and Paraguay, and is almost extinct in Uruguay. It is actually not a wolf or a dog, but instead sits in its own genus Chrysocyon which means “golden dog”. It is crepuscular and omnivorous, and lives on the open habitat of the South America Savanna. The IUCN classes it as near threatened, while a Brazilian organisation with a similar role lists it as vulnerable.
Its name in a local language calls it a big fox. Indeed some studies have suggested that it should be in the same genus as pseudo-foxes.
A recent study suggested that its nearest relative was the Falkland islands wolf, and its mainland relatives – but you have to go back 7 million years to find a common ancestor with this group.
It only hunts solitarily, and its preferred habitat is grasslands, scrub prairies, and forests.
It is not currently considered endangered, given its wide area in which it inhabits, never-the-less it is recognized as a near threatened species due to its reducing numbers. In Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay it is forbidden to hunt them. It has been used to publicize the fight to protect the Brazilian cerrado, by placing it on one of the Brazilian notes.
This animal was shown in great detail in planet earth 3 episode 3, however, this clip is from a bbc series a few years ago.
As we make contacts which you can use to plan your travel to see this animal for yourself.
For those watching this amazing series, you will have see the beautiful animal - looking rather like a fox on stilts, the maned wolf is a species that lives on...
The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere, plus parts of North Africa. It is listed as least concern by the IUCN. Its range has increased alongside human expansion, having been introduced to Australia, where it is considered harmful to native mammals and bird populations. Due to its presence in Australia, it is included on the list of the “world’s 100 worst invasive species”. It should be noted, that humans have usually been either the direct cause of red foxes invading a new country, or have allowed them to migrate as a result of climate change.
The red fox originated from smaller-sized ancestors from Eurasia during the Middle Villafranchian period, and colonised North America shortly after the Wisconsin glaciation. Among the true foxes, the red fox represents a more progressive form in the direction of carnivory. Apart from its large size, the red fox is distinguished from other fox species by its ability to adapt quickly to new environments. Despite its name, the species often produces individuals with other colourings, including leucistic and melanistic individuals. Forty-five subspecies are currently recognised, which are divided into two categories: the large northern foxes and the small, basal southern grey desert foxes of Asia and North Africa.
The pale fox (Vulpes pallida) is a species of fox found in the band of African Sahel from Senegal in the west to Sudan in the east. It is one of the least studied of all canid species, in part due to its remote habitat and its sandy coat that blends in well with the desert-like terrain.
There are 5 recognized sub-species.
It is found in the semi-arid Sahelian region of Africa bordering the Sahara Desert, from Mauritania and Senegal via Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad to the Red Sea. The southern border of its range extends to the savanna zones of northern Guinea. It is also present in Benin, Burkina Faso, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Mali, Niger, South Sudan and Sudan. The habitat is sandy or stony arid terrain, and the pale fox is able to relocate southwards and northwards in relation to the periodic droughts that affect these regions.
Although the density of the pale fox is unknown, it seems to be a common species throughout its wide range. No particular threats have been identified although this fox is sometimes hunted in retaliation on raids on villages and predating poultry, and it is sometimes killed by vehicles at night. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of “least concern”.
The kit fox (Vulpes macrotis) is a fox species that inhabits arid and semi-arid regions of the southwestern United States and northern and central Mexico. These foxes are the smallest of the four species of Vulpes occurring in North America and are among the smallest of the vulpines worldwide. It has also been called a North American counterpart of the fennec fox due to its large ears.
It has been suggested that this fox is the same species as the Swift fox – though genetic analysis suggests that this is not the case. It has also suggested that, due to its ears, this is essentially the American Fennec fox
The endangered San Joaquin kit fox is a recognized subspecies. It is found in around 8 states in the USA. Its population has been depressed, in parts of its range – as a result of the extinction of the wolf in California. As a result of this local extinction, there is far less predation on the coyote, which has lead to the coyote eating more of these kit foxes.
Corsac foxes are found  in steppes, semi-deserts and deserts in central Asia, ranging into Mongolia and northern China. Since 2004 it has been listed as least concern. However, its population fluctuates wildly with history of its population dropping ten times over in a single year.
This small fox is native to central Asia and the middle east. It should be noted, that it is named for its British discoverer, but has a wide variety of other names including Afghan fox, royal fox, dog fox, hoary fox, steppe fox, black fox, king fox, cliff fox or Baluchistan fox
Blanford’s fox
Once only known from southwest Asia, this species was reported in Israel in 1981 and was later found to be more widespread in the Arabian Peninsular. Peters and Rödel (1994) reviewed the available distribution records of this species and presented, for the eastern part of the range, what they considered to be definitive records from around the Iranian Plateau in Iran, Turkmenistan and Pakistan, with more doubtful records (usually based on skins collected from fur bazaars or otherwise indirectly) from Afghanistan and Tajikistan (though there is no such record).
There are also now confirmed records in the middle east from Jordan, the Sinai Peninsular (Egypt), Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. They have long been suspected of occurring in Yemen and have been reported at an altitude of about 1,200 m above sea level in Hawf Forest Al Mahre Governorate, in the far east of Yemen, near the border with Oman. It also seemed possible that they may have lived in western Yemen, where the mountains in southwestern Arabia were contiguous, and the camera trapping record in February 2014 in Wadi Sharis inHajjah Governorate, NW of Sana’a, now confirms their existence. There is a single record from Egypt, west of the Suez canal, of an animal captured in 1988, originally believed to be Vulpes rueppellii. There are no verified documents from here, but they may have existed.
At the current time, there is little directed persecution, and they are thought to have healthy populations across the middle east.
Also called assa, Cama fox and silver backed fox, it is a small species of fox native to Southern African – it is sometimes called the South African version of the Fennec fox. It is the only animal from the genus Vulpes in Africa South of the equator.
It is nocturnal, most active just before dawn, or just after dusk. Mostly found alone, when they pair to breed, they often look for food together. They are opportunistic eaters, eating almost anything they find. This includes everything from carrion and human waste food, to fruit and vegetables to, and a whole range of rodents, hares, rabbits, reptiles and insects. They have also been known to hunt animals as large as steenboks. They have been found to have 16% of their stomach contents being sheep. It is thought, however, that they would only be able to take small lambs under 3 months old, or are eating dead sheep as carrion.
There are lions who will actively hunt them, while a range of animals such as honey badgers and leopards will eat one if they come across it. Black backed jackals have also been known to eat them.
The Bengal fox (also known as the Indian fox, and is found from the foothills of the Himalayas in the north through Southern India, and from eastern Pakistan to eastern India and South-eastern Bangladesh.
Bengal fox
They are smaller than red foxes, and is endemic to the Indian subcontinent. It has been recorded 1500m up in the mountains (at almost a mile above sea level). Generally crepuscular (active in early mornings and late evening) as well as nocturnal.
As with other foxes, generally, they are thought to pair long-term, and then live together, and that this is the standard social structure in this species. However, often pups will stay around after they are capable of living alone. There have also been groups of up to 4 adults have been recorded sharing the same den.
Although found across a large area, they tend to live at very low densities, which means that they can quickly disappear from an area, in Southern India less than 2% of bengal fox habitat is protected. They are hunted for both skin and flesh Narikuruva tribes hunt them and have done for a very long time – however, with the increased number in these tribes, and other pressures on the fox, we need to keep an eye on this situation – otherwise it could rapidly become endangered.
