Individual and seasonal variation in contact rate, connectivity and centrality in red fox (Vulpes vulpes) social groups

Abstract

Examining temporal variation in social connectivity and relating this to individual behaviour can help understand the role of individuals within social groups. Although red foxes are solitary foragers, they form social groups at higher population densities. To investigate the effects of season, sex and status on social connectivity in red fox social groups, we set camera traps for four consecutive seasons to record contact rates and social network metrics at food patches in seven fox territories. Higher food availability was associated with higher contact rates. Individual contact rates peaked in different seasons depending on sex and social status. Dominant foxes held central network positions in all seasons but there was no consistent pattern in social connections within territories, suggesting a greater influence of features such as group size and composition on network structure than seasonal behaviour. Increased extraterritorial movements by males during winter contributed to a significant reduction in local network connectivity. Female network strength did not vary with season, suggesting that females play an important role in maintaining year-round group cohesion. These data advance our understanding of canid social systems, the benefits of group-living in solitary foraging carnivores, and the impacts of management interventions for an ecologically important species.

Are British urban foxes (Vulpes vulpes) “bold”? The importance of understanding human–wildlife interactions in urban areas

“…We used two 20‐day experimental periods, in late November/early December 2014 and May 2015, to examine seasonal influences. Late November/early December is the peak dispersal period for red foxes (Harris & Trewhella, 1988), and May is when most adults in a social group help provision young cubs (Baker et al., 1998); these changes in behavior are associated with seasonal differences in intergroup movements and social relationships (Dorning & Harris, 2019b, 2019c). Any cubs recorded in May were excluded from the analyses.…”

Red fox viromes in urban and rural landscapes

“…Abundant food can decrease carnivore home ranges, support higher densities, and increase conspecific encounter rates ( Bateman and Fleming 2012 ; Newsome et al. 2015 ; Dorning and Harris 2019 ). Urban fox family group sizes are often larger than rural ones, as juvenile females may forego dispersal to assist with cub rearing ( Macdonald 1979 , 1983 ; Marks and Bloomfield 1999 ).…”

“…Urban fox family group sizes are often larger than rural ones, as juvenile females may forego dispersal to assist with cub rearing ( Macdonald 1979 , 1983 ; Marks and Bloomfield 1999 ). Thus, urban environments may enhance conspecific tolerance and social behaviours in foxes ( Macdonald 1979 , 1983 ; Marks and Bloomfield 1999 ; Dorning and Harris 2019 ).…”

Spatial Aspects of Gardens Drive Ranging in Urban Foxes (Vulpes vulpes): The Resource Dispersion Hypothesis Revisited

“…Resources in urban gardens include supplementary food provided by householders, ponds, shrubs or mature tree cover for diurnal rest sites, and spaces under sheds and other outside structures for dens personal observations, [14,16,44]. Fox group size and social connectivity have been linked to supplementary food provision in urban areas [14,45], but a link between resources and urban fox range size and structure has not, to our knowledge, been empirically demonstrated thus far. Natural food items are likely to be more numerous in larger gardens, consistent with species-area relationships [46] and concomitant with fox generalist life history.…”

“…In our study, dominance status was reliably assigned in only three of 20 foxes, and we had no information on network connections c.f. [45], hence, we could not control for social factors in our statistical models. This represents a limitation of the study and future work should incorporate these within the theoretical framework from the outset.…”