Home ranges and movements of red foxes in central Europe: stability despite environmental changes

Abstract

Thirteen red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) were radio-tracked between September 1989 and August 1993 in the Swiss Jura mountains. Home ranges of subadult and adult resident foxes did not differ and were small (seasonal estimates 0.48–3.06 km2). A nomadic adult was also monitored; it used a significantly larger area (12.71–25.90 km2). In most cases, home range sizes did not vary seasonally and were not affected by drastic changes in food availability. That foxes maintain a constant territory size is in accordance with both the "contractor" and "obstinate" strategies. The small observed sizes suggest that after the eradication of rabies, rural areas of central Europe are very good habitats for foxes. In the absence of clumped feeding patches or constraining factors (e.g., deep snow cover), the foxes moved regularly throughout their home range, typically in a "non-oriented zigzag." The distance travelled per day seemed to be affected only by home range size (positive correlation) and occasionally, according to the individual, by weather or snow cover. On average, the foxes moved 3.9–12.0 km a day. Despite its significantly larger home range, the nomadic fox did not move more than the resident foxes; the physical characteristics of red foxes probably set a limit to the distance travelled daily.

Variation in home range size of red foxes Vulpes vulpes along a gradient of productivity and human landscape alteration

“…Further, six foxes, not included in this study, used two distinct home ranges and regularly traveled between them. Meia and Weber [63] cautioned the use of nomadic foxes in averaging home range estimates due to the significant home range size differences between resident and nomadic foxes. However, this study shows movement patterns that indicate resident foxes use much larger areas than previously presumed.…”

Stability of the southern European border ofEchinococcus multilocularisin the Alps: evidence thatMicrotus arvalisis a limiting factor

“…Fox home-range sizes in different studies on Continental Europe ranged between 0·6-9·3 km 2 (Trewhella et al 1988;Meia and Weber, 1995). All grid cells outside this area were referred as belonging to a non-endemic area.…”

Potential influence of high‐elevation wind farms on carnivore mobility

“…The movement of both species is compromised by deep powdery snow (Halpin and Bissonette , Crête and Larivière , Gese et al , Dowd et al ), which limits locomotion (Murray and Boutin , Crête and Larivière ) and increases reliance on compacted snow surfaces or habitats that ameliorate deep snowpack when snow depth increases (Halpin and Bissonette , Gese et al , Dowd et al ), as observed in this study. However, extreme cold and deep, powdery snow can limit coyote and red fox movements (Bekoff and Wells , Halpin and Bissonette , Meia and Weber ), and these conditions were common during mid‐winter surveys and at higher elevations (Sirén ). Although we surveyed different transects, we detected canids only along low‐elevation routes during pre‐construction surveys in 2007, which was an exceptionally deep snow winter (Stantec ).…”

“…Previous studies indicate that deep and low‐density snow causes generalist carnivores to either modify habitat use (Halpin and Bissonette , Dowd et al ) or become increasingly reliant on compacted snow surfaces to adapt to conditions that hinder locomotion (Crête and Larivière , Bunnell et al , Gese et al ). However, these relationships are less pronounced during mild winters (Meia and Weber , Crête and Larivière , Kolbe et al ). An understanding of these mechanisms is limited for a community of carnivores (although see recent findings by Pozzanghera et al ) yet is critical for understanding effective conservation to minimize conditions that compromise snow‐adapted species.…”