The smallest fox, from the deserts of North Africa. Its huge ears, the biggest for its size of any member of the dog family, shed heat and pick up prey moving underground.
Quick answers
What is it?Mammal
Carnivore?Omnivore
Dangerous?No
Domesticated?No
Awake when?Night
A night hunter that shelters by day from the desert heat.
Hibernates?No
Kept as a pet?Sometimes
Bred commercially as an exotic pet, and kept as one as far back as ancient Rome.
Do people eat it?No
At a glance
Found inAfrica
HabitatDesert
ColoursCream, Tan
SizeTiny
Weight0.8–1.5 kg
Legs4
Covered inFur
Lives infamilies
Lives for10–14 years
In the wild
- Where it lives
- The Sahara, from Western Sahara and Mauritania to the Sinai Peninsula.
- What it eats
- Mainly insects, small mammals and birds.
Did you know
The smallest fox alive, with ears a third of its body length to dump heat.
Fennec family burrows can cover 120 m² and join up with the burrows of other families.
Often confused with
- Red fox
The fennec is far smaller than a red fox, with much bigger ears.
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