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Home range, habitat selection and diet of foxes (vulpes vulpes) in a semi-urban riparian environment
journal contribution
posted on 2006-01-01, 00:00 authored by John WhiteJohn White, R Gubiani, N Smallman, K Snell, A MortonBetween 2000 and 2002 the home range, habitat selection and diet of foxes were examined in the Dandenong Creek Valley, Melbourne, Australia. The mean home range was 44.6 ha (range 19.2–152.6 ha). A significant selection towards blackberry and gorse used as diurnal shelter was found during the day with an active avoidance of less structurally complex vegetation types. Although there was obvious selection of certain habitats, the diet of the foxes was highly general and opportunistic and thus offers little potential as a factor to manipulate in order to reduce fox abundance. Given the strong preference for blackberry and gorse as a shelter resource, a habitat-manipulation strategy is suggested whereby patches of blackberry and gorse are removed and replaced with less structurally complex vegetation. Such a strategy has the potential to influence the density of foxes in semi-urban riparian environments such as those discussed in this study.
History
Journal
Wildlife researchVolume
33Issue
3Pagination
175 - 180Publisher
CSIRO PublishingLocation
Collingwood, Vic.Publisher DOI
ISSN
1035-3712eISSN
1448-5494Language
engPublication classification
C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal; C Journal articleCopyright notice
2006, CSIROUsage metrics
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