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Bat-eared Fox
The bat-eared fox looks like a large fennec, but is taller and has a grey-brown coat which varies in shade. It is a peculiar member of the canine family since experts do not know whether it is a tbx, a .jackal or a small dog. It is related tel the cape hunting dog but lives in a much drier habitat and prefers drier grasslands. The bat-eared fox is nocturnal but can often be seen during the day, especially during the morning while it sunbathes. It lives in families, composed of an adult couple and their young. It is a curious creature, which will often come close to houses just to see what is going on, intrigued by the inhabitant's behaviour. The sleeping place of the bat-eared fox will be perhaps the abandoned earth of a porcupine or an aardvark, but often the animal will be happy with shelter beneath a particularly tangled bush. Like all dogs it is cowardly, fearing above all its principal enemy the leopard. The bat-eared fox is neither voracious nor especially bloodthirsty; it is happy with small prey, lizards, sparrows which nest on the ground and particularly insects. Experts maintain that it is even a true insectivore, that it is to the Canidae what the aardwolf is to the Hyaenidae. Its teeth are weak, being small, not very strong and very sharp in order to allow it to break the outer skeleton, sometimes very hard, of certain scarabs. Its favourite tbod is ants, of which it will consume large quantities. The bat-eared fox never attack cattle or chicken. This member of the Canidae is distinguished especially by the thct that it possesses 48 teeth more than any other mammal- except for Cetaceans. Gestation: 60 to 70 days Adult weight: 3 - 4.5 kg (6 1/2 - 10lb) Body: 46 to 58cm (18to23in) long Number of Young: 2 to 5 Tail : 24 -34 cm (9.5 - 13.5 inches) long
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A curious dog with large ears
