Estudio comparado de la dieta de los zorros mediterráneos (Carnivora, Canidae)

Abstract

Food habits of four species of foxes iVulpes vulp es, Canis culp aeus, Canis griseus and Urocyon cinereoargenteus) in mediterranean areas of Spain, France. Italy, Australia, Chile and United States of America were compared. The Iberian and Australian foxes appear as insectivores, while the Italian foxes eat fruit and insects and the French ones eat lagomorphs, insects and fruit. Both Chilean species mainly capture rodents and the North American Urocyon consumes fruit and insects. Results can be interpreted in three ways: a) rejecting the hypothesis of convergence among mediterranean ecosystems, b) considering that the well known foxes' opportunism maximizes small differences in prey availability, and/or c) considering that assemblages do not yield a good description of the convergence between communities.