Diet of arctic foxes ( Alopex lagopus) in Iceland
Arctic foxes, Alopex lagopus , live in low productivity arctic and northern tundra habitats, where they generally prey heavily on lemmings. In Iceland, however, no lemmings are present, and the foxes have a very varied diet, including plants such as seaweed and black crowberries, a wide range of bir...
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Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x |
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crwiley:10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x 2024-06-02T07:54:51+00:00 Diet of arctic foxes ( Alopex lagopus) in Iceland Hersteinsson, P. Macdonald, D. W. 1996 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Journal of Zoology volume 240, issue 3, page 457-474 ISSN 0952-8369 1469-7998 journal-article 1996 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x 2024-05-03T11:01:04Z Arctic foxes, Alopex lagopus , live in low productivity arctic and northern tundra habitats, where they generally prey heavily on lemmings. In Iceland, however, no lemmings are present, and the foxes have a very varied diet, including plants such as seaweed and black crowberries, a wide range of birds and invertebrates, and carcasses of large mammals such as seals, reindeer, and sheep. Marked seasonal, geographical and inter‐annual differences confirm arctic foxes in Iceland as opportunistic feeders. There are coastal and inland foxes: coastal foxes feed mainly on prey derived directly or indirectly from the ocean, particularly various seabirds and seals, while inland foxes feed largely on migrant birds, such as geese, waders and passerines in summer, and ptarmigan in winter. Despite their reputation for killing lambs, in this study, lamb carcasses were found at only 19.4% of 1125 fox dens, 44% of which had only one carcass. The distance to the nearest farm and the physical condition of lambs were major determinants of the number of carcasses found at a den. We discuss the implications of arctic foxes' diet for population dynamics and group formation, and for management practices. Article in Journal/Newspaper Alopex lagopus Arctic Iceland Tundra Wiley Online Library Arctic Journal of Zoology 240 3 457 474 |
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Wiley Online Library |
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language |
English |
description |
Arctic foxes, Alopex lagopus , live in low productivity arctic and northern tundra habitats, where they generally prey heavily on lemmings. In Iceland, however, no lemmings are present, and the foxes have a very varied diet, including plants such as seaweed and black crowberries, a wide range of birds and invertebrates, and carcasses of large mammals such as seals, reindeer, and sheep. Marked seasonal, geographical and inter‐annual differences confirm arctic foxes in Iceland as opportunistic feeders. There are coastal and inland foxes: coastal foxes feed mainly on prey derived directly or indirectly from the ocean, particularly various seabirds and seals, while inland foxes feed largely on migrant birds, such as geese, waders and passerines in summer, and ptarmigan in winter. Despite their reputation for killing lambs, in this study, lamb carcasses were found at only 19.4% of 1125 fox dens, 44% of which had only one carcass. The distance to the nearest farm and the physical condition of lambs were major determinants of the number of carcasses found at a den. We discuss the implications of arctic foxes' diet for population dynamics and group formation, and for management practices. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hersteinsson, P. Macdonald, D. W. |
spellingShingle |
Hersteinsson, P. Macdonald, D. W. Diet of arctic foxes ( Alopex lagopus) in Iceland |
author_facet |
Hersteinsson, P. Macdonald, D. W. |
author_sort |
Hersteinsson, P. |
title |
Diet of arctic foxes ( Alopex lagopus) in Iceland |
title_short |
Diet of arctic foxes ( Alopex lagopus) in Iceland |
title_full |
Diet of arctic foxes ( Alopex lagopus) in Iceland |
title_fullStr |
Diet of arctic foxes ( Alopex lagopus) in Iceland |
title_full_unstemmed |
Diet of arctic foxes ( Alopex lagopus) in Iceland |
title_sort |
diet of arctic foxes ( alopex lagopus) in iceland |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
1996 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Alopex lagopus Arctic Iceland Tundra |
genre_facet |
Alopex lagopus Arctic Iceland Tundra |
op_source |
Journal of Zoology volume 240, issue 3, page 457-474 ISSN 0952-8369 1469-7998 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1996.tb05298.x |
container_title |
Journal of Zoology |
container_volume |
240 |
container_issue |
3 |
container_start_page |
457 |
op_container_end_page |
474 |
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1800743978689101824 |