More female red foxes Vulpes vulpes on bait sites in spring
Jens Galby & Olav Hjeljord
The red fox Vulpes vulpes has traditionally been subjected to control efforts throughout much of its range. In this article, we present data on the sex and age composition of red foxes culled at bait sites in an area of southeastern Norway. While an excess of males were shot in early and mid-winter, equal proportions of males and females were shot in early spring. Apparently, females are more nutritionally stressed in March due to pregnancy and therefore visit bait sites more frequently. Culling earlier in winter will predominantly remove males and will bias the sex composition in the population towards females.
Key words: control, female behaviour, sex/age ratio, Vulpes vulpes
Jens Galby* & Olav Hjeljord, Department of Ecology and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, P.O. Box 5014, N-1432A ˚ s, Norway - e-mail addresses: jens.galby@anticimex.no (Jens Galby); olav.hjeljord@umb.no (Olav Hjeljord)
*Present address: Galbyveien 245, N-1540 Vestby, Norway
Corresponding author: Olav Hjeljord
Received 28 January 2008, accepted 22 March 2010
Associate Editor: Graeme Coulson
Wildl. Biol. 16: 221-224 (2010)
DOI: 10.2981/08-008
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