Bat-Eared Fox(Otocyon megalotis)
Bat-eared foxes are relatively small canids, ranging in weight from 3 kg to 5.3 kg. Head and body length is 46–66 cm, tail length is 23–34 cm, shoulder height is 30–40 cm, and the notably large ears are 11–13 cm long. Generally, the pelage is tan-coloured, with grey agouti guard hairs, giving its grizzled appearance, appearing more buff on the sides. The undersides and throat are pale. The limbs are dark, shading to dark brown or black at their extremities. The muzzle, the tip and upperside of the tail and the facial mask are black. The insides of the ears are white.
There are two subspecies one is found in Southern Africa and the other is found in Eastern Africa. Individuals of the East African subspecies, tend toward a buff pelage with dark brown markings, as opposed to the black of the southern subspecies. Proportionally large ears of bat-eared foxes, a characteristic shared by many other inhabitants of hot, arid climates, help to distribute heat. They also help in locating prey.
Habitat
Bat-eared foxes are adapted to arid or semi-arid environments. They are commonly found in short grasslands, as well as the more arid regions of the savannahs, along woodland edges, and in open acacia woodlands. It prefers bare ground and areas where grass is kept short by grazing ungulates. It tends to hunt in these short grass and low shrub habitats. However, it does venture into areas with tall grasses and thick shrubs to hide when threatened. In addition to raising their young in dens, bat-eared foxes use self-dug dens for shelter from extreme temperatures and winds. They also lie under acacia trees in South Africa to seek shade during the day.
Diet
Bat-eared foxes are considered the only truly insectivorous canid, with a marked preference for harvester termites, which can constitute 80–90% of its diet.
When this particular species of termite is not available, their opportunistic diet allows a wide variety of food items to be taken: they can consume other species of termites, other arthropods such as ants, beetles, crickets, grasshoppers, millipedes, moths, scorpions, spiders, and rarely birds, small mammals, reptiles, and fungi . Berries, seeds, and wild fruit also are consumed. The bat-eared fox refuses to feed on snouted harvester termites, likely because it is not adapted to tolerate termites' chemical defence. Generally, bat-eared foxes meet their water requirements by the high water content of their diet, water constitutes a critical resource during lactation.
Breeding
The bat-eared fox is monogamous, usually mating once in a lifetime. However, there are recorded cases of 2 females living with 1 male and a case of communal nursing. Breeding takes place in September-November. The gestation period lasts 60-70 days, after which the female gives birth to 2-5 babies. Both parents participate in rearing the babies. On the 9th day after their birth, the babies open their eyes while on the 17th day the youngsters begin to venture from the den. Sometimes the process of weaning lasts long: it usually starts when the babies are 1 month old and lasts about 2-3 months, during which the youngsters continue suckling from their mother. And finally, at the age of 5-6 months the young are full grown. Sexual maturity is reached at 9 months old.
Population
According to the IUCN Red List, they are classed as Least Concern(LC). The species is common in conservation areas in southern and eastern Africa, becoming uncommon in arid areas and on farms in South Africa where they are occasionally persecuted. Within a circumscribed habitat, numbers can fluctuate from abundant to rare depending on rainfall, food availability, breeding stage and disease. Recorded densities include 0.7-14/km² in the Kalahari and 0.3-1.0 / km² in the Serengeti.
Threats
There are no major threats, but they are subject to subsistence hunting for skins or because they are perceived as being predators of small livestock. Populations fluctuate due to disease (especially rabies and canine distemper, which can cause short-term drastic declines in populations) or drought (which depresses insect numbers).
Conservation
The species is not included in the CITES Appendices. It is present in a number of protected areas across its range. Bat-eared Foxes are kept in captivity in North America, Europe, South Africa and Asia, although never in large numbers. A Bat-eared Fox European StudBook was established at Banham Zoo in 2011 and an AZA Studbook has been established at Peoria Zoo in Illinois (2012/2013). Importations have occurred throughout the history of the captive population despite successful captive breeding since 1970. Bat-eared Foxes can coexist well with other species and are frequently seen in African plains exhibits at zoos. Little is known about dispersal of young and the formation of new breeding pairs. The causal factors for differences in home range size in different localities, group size and changes in density as a function of food availability are poorly known. In the Serengeti, behavioural evidence on group and pair formation and the existence of 'super families', consisting of one male and up to three closely related breeding females, raises interesting questions about regular inbreeding between males and their daughters from several generations.