Bat-eared Fox: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Foxes and Raccoon Dogs · day 3 of 7

Five facts

1. Its giant ears do two jobs: they help it get rid of heat, and they help it track down prey.
2. It is the only member of the dog family that truly lives on insects. Harvester termites can make up 80 to 90% of its meals.
3. Nobody has seen it drinking from a pond or puddle. It gets the water it needs from its food.
4. It can have up to 50 teeth. No land mammal outside the marsupials is known to have more.
5. Unusually, fathers do most of the parenting. Dads groom, guard, huddle with and carry the pups.

The quiz

1. What do the bat-eared fox's big ears help it do?

• Dig burrows
• Lose heat and find prey (correct)
• Store water
• Scare off lions

Its ears help spread heat away and help it locate prey.

2. What makes up most of the bat-eared fox's diet?

• Fish
• Rodents
• Fruit
• Harvester termites (correct)

Harvester termites can make up 80 to 90% of what it eats.

3. How does the bat-eared fox get its water?

• From its food (correct)
• By drinking at waterholes
• By licking rocks after rain
• From tree sap

It has not been seen drinking and gets water from its food.

4. Up to how many teeth can a bat-eared fox have?

• 20
• 32
• 50 (correct)
• 100

It has 46 to 50 teeth, a record outside the marsupials.

5. In bat-eared fox families, who does most of the pup care?

• The mother
• The father (correct)
• Older sisters
• Neighbouring families

Roles are reversed: the male does most of the parental care.

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