Introduction
The Arctic fox—also called the white fox, polar fox, or snow fox—is a small fox that is indigenous to the Northern Hemisphere’s Arctic areas. It is widespread throughout the Arctic tundra biome. It is well recognized for its thick, insulating fur, which doubles as camouflage and is well adapted to surviving in frigid climates. Its tail is big and extremely fluffy. Most animals in the wild cannot survive past their first year. However, some remarkable ones can live up to 11 years.
What is the Arctic fox known for?
The Arctic fox is well known for its hunting skills. It hunts rodents, birds, and even fish because it is a carnivore and a scavenger. Because prey might be sparse in the winter, Arctic foxes sometimes exhibit their cheekier traits. They are known to consume leftover scraps, imitating the top predator in the Arctic, the polar bear.
What is the biggest threat to the Arctic Fox?
The loss of pack ice may also have a variety of implications for how coastal arctic foxes interact with the marine ecology in terms of foraging. The polar bear and seal species that depend on sea ice will undoubtedly suffer significantly from the loss of sea ice. Thus, the Arctic fox may soon lose the ability to hunt ringed seal pups and scavenge on polar kills. However, the fact that Arctic fox populations remain sizable and extremely robust along Iceland’s entirely ice-free beaches suggests that the Arctic fox may have a bright future on Arctic islands that are not completely encircled by sea ice.
Will it go extinct?
The Arctic islands’ ice connection with the continents may permanently vanish in a few decades, protecting the island ecosystems against species, like the red fox. However, the absence of sea ice between the Arctic islands and continents will also result in the loss of the vast panmictic, circumpolar Arctic fox population’s linkage and gene flow. As a result, future genetic differences between various groups can be projected to rise. Additionally, certain small island populations are likely to lose genetic diversity. Lastly, small island populations won’t be recolonized because they are likely to go extinct for various causes.
Conclusion
Since the Arctic fox ultimately depends on open tundra environments, its history as an extant species will also be closed if this habitat eventually becomes blocked by a northward-expanding forest. However, the more rapid ecological changes that are currently occurring within the tundra ecosystem are of greater urgent concern since they could, in a few decades, drive out the Arctic fox from a significant portion of the circumpolar tundra habitat.
References
Carino, L. (2018). The Arctic Fox and 10 Fun Facts About it. [online] Arctic Kingdom. Available at: https://arctickingdom.com/10-fun-facts-about-arctic-fox/#:~:text=Arctic%20foxes%20are%20well%2Dknown [Accessed 24 August. 2022].
Fuglei, E. and Ims, R.A. (2008). Global Warming and effects on the Arctic Fox. Science Progress, 91(2), pp.175–191. doi:10.3184/003685008×327468. [online] Available at: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.3184/003685008X327468 [Accessed 31 August. 2022]
Wikipedia Contributors (2019). Arctic fox. [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic_fox. [Accessed 24 August 2022]
