Foods of arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) during winter and spring in western Alaska
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Abstract
During 1986–1991, carcasses of 619 arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) collected from local trappers and at biological field camps on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta in western Alaska from November through May were analyzed to determine gastrointestinal contents, age, sex, and body condition. Prey in declining order of importance were small mammals (95% tundra voles, Microtus oeconomus), birds, marine mammals, and fishes. Foxes with small mammal remains in their stomachs were captured farther from the Bering Sea coast (X̄ = 5.2 km) than those without small-mammal remains (2.8 km); foxes consuming remains of marine mammals were closer to the coast (1.9 km) than others (4.9 km). Although eggshells had a poor likelihood of occurrence in stomachs, they were found in all months and years. In 1986 and 1987, foxes consumed fewer small mammals than in other years. Mean ages of foxes captured in 1986 (3.7 years) and 1987 (3.2) were greater than in all other years (1.5). Capture of adults was more common as winter progressed. Indexes of subcutaneous fat decreased annually in April–May and were highest in 1991, when occurrence of carrion of marine mammals was highest.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Foods of arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) during winter and spring in western Alaska |
| Series title | Journal of Mammalogy |
| DOI | 10.1644/1545-1542(2000)081<0820:FOAFAL>2.3.CO;2 |
| Volume | 81 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Year Published | 2000 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| Contributing office(s) | Alaska Biological Science Center |
| Description | 9 p. |
| First page | 820 |
| Last page | 828 |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alaska |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |