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 Persecution and HuntingWolves, Wild Dogs and Foxes: Page 10 Small predators also underwent persecution in North America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Two tiny western foxes that were once considered to be the same species, the Swift Fox (Vulpes velox), native to shortgrass prairie, and the Kit Fox (Vulpes macrotis) of intermountain and desert grasslands further west, both declined as a result of predator-control programs. Both are shades of tawny, reddish-brown and tan, stand about 1 foot tall, measure 23 to 31 inches long, and weigh less than 5 pounds (Nowak 1999). Although not considered threats to cows or sheep, foxes traditionally have been killed because of their possible threat to poultry. In wilderness areas, they have been killed merely because of predator prejudice. These foxes subsist on small rodents and even insects, such as grasshoppers, and are, therefore, beneficial.
The Swift Fox was named for its speed when streaking across the prairie, clocked at about 25 miles per hour (Turbak 1993). The Canadian populations of the Northern Swift Fox (Vulpes velox hebes), native to southern Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba, and the northern edge of the shortgrass prairie that once stretched to Texas, are listed as Endangered on the US Endangered Species Act but are extinct. They disappeared from the wild by the 1930s, after control programs were implemented, and Canadian wildlife authorities have reintroduced Swift Foxes of a related subspecies from Colorado, Wyoming and South Dakota (Nowak 1999). Some reproduction has taken place.
Swift and Kit Foxes began to decline in the 19th century, and Ernest Thompson Seton commented on the vulnerability of this species: "Harmless to man and mankind's interests; and yet he is going fast with all the other innocent and lovely wild things. Yes, faster than most, for he is the least cunning of our foxes--so guileless that he readily takes the poisoned baits used nowadays for killing coyotes" (Seton 1899). In fact, almost none of these foxes was seen in the wild from the early 1920s to the late 1950s, a period of heavy predator-control and poison campaigns (Chambers 1978). Both species have lost the majority of their habitats to agriculture. In North Dakota, the state lists the Swift Fox as an endangered species, with no breeding populations. The last known occurrence of the Swift Fox in this state was in the mid-1980s (Turbak 1993). Further south, this species is known to survive in southwestern Kansas, Nebraska, Montana, Wyoming and South Dakota (Chambers 1978). Some areas of unplowed prairie provide refuge. This fox has been able to colonize on roadsides next to fields and in the few remaining unpoisoned prairie dog towns. Some research has been carried out on the wild behavior and habitat needs of Swift Foxes in the Midwest, and there is room for cautious optimism that increased attention to this little fox will result in strong legislation to preserve it and prevent persecution and poisoning. Author Glenn Chambers was researching an article for Audubon magazine, "Little Fox on the Prairie" when he saw a fox family being killed by two farmers who poured gasoline in the den entrance and set fire to it. The male fox, provider of food for the vixen and pups, was found in a ditch a few yards away, his rib cage ripped out by a high-velocity bullet (Chambers 1978). The vixen had escaped the burning den with two of the pups, but the farmers shot her as she watched over them (Chambers 1978).
Kit Foxes occupy deserts, dry grasslands, and montane areas with scattered trees from Utah north to Washington state and west to California. They prey mainly on kangaroo rats and other small rodents. A subspecies from southern California known as the San Joaquin Kit Fox (Vulpes macrotis mutica) is listed on the US Endangered Species Act as Endangered. Settlement and farming of the region reduced their habitat, and predator control has eliminated entire populations, causing them to dwindle to a few thousand animals. This delicate, little buffy-yellow fox is now restricted to a tiny remnant of its once immense habitat of mixed grasslands, deserts and shrub in California. Their original range stretched from San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties in the north to Kern County in the south. They probably numbered at least 12,000 prior to settlement (Turbak 1993). Tame and trusting, they became targets for hunters; even schoolboys with rifles have been seen shooting them as sport (Turbak 1993). One hunter was seen shooting a pair's tiny cubs one after another as they played at the den entrance, then killing the mother when she emerged to protect them (Turbak 1993).
Foxes have been considered threats to livestock and domestic poultry by European settlers. The Cape Fox (Vulpes chama) of dry country in southern Africa was the object of control programs by European settlers under the misapprehension that it preyed on domestic poultry. This resulted in declines in the numbers and range of this small, silvery-gray fox (Nowak 1999). The Hoary Fox (Lycalopex vetulus) of south-central Brazil, an endemic species of savannah grasslands, is persecuted by local people for presumed predation on domestic fowl (Nowak 1999). Although very shy, it courageously defends itself and its young when threatened (Nowak 1999). Little is known of its status, listed as Data Deficient by the IUCN. Argentine Gray Foxes (Dusicyon griseus), native to Patagonian grasslands, have been poisoned by livestock owners who distribute strychnine bait. Their populations have declined in many areas as a result, and thousands of non-target mammals and birds have died from these poisons. Such poisoning is illegal in Argentina, and efforts are being made by biologists and conservationists to stop this senseless killing.
Eight species of foxes are listed as Data Deficient by the 2000 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and two species as Conservation Dependent. This is an indication of the lack of research on these ecologically important species, which perform the important role of consuming large numbers of rodents. Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes), native to North America, Eurasia and northern Africa, have been persecuted as well, hunted as sport in England and parts of the United States, and killed by many farmers and livestock owners. One Midwestern town even rounded up these foxes once a year and beat them to death with sticks. After a Life magazine article describing this cruel persecution and the resulting public outcry, it ended. Fox hunting in England may end in the near future as the Parliament has voted to stop this cruel activity.
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