Fennec Fox (Vulpes zerda) Fact Sheet: Population & Conservation Status

Population estimates

• Global population size unknown (Sillero-Zubiri 2009a)
• Considered common through most of its range (Wacher et al. 2015)
• Common throughout the Sahara Desert (Asa and Cuzin 2013)

Population structure

• Populations less genetically diverse compared to other canid species of North Africa (Leite et al. 2015; Karssene, Nowak, et al. 2019)

IUCN

• Least Concern (2015 assessment) (Wacher et al. 2015)
• Previous assessments (Wacher et al. 2015)
  • 2008: Least Concern
  • 1996, 2004: Data Deficient
  • 1990, 1994: Insufficiently Known

CITES

• Appendix II (as of June 2019) (UNEP 2019)

Government laws and regulations

• Countries where legally protected (Sillero-Zubiri 2009a; Castelló 2018):
  • Morocco (including Western Sahara)
  • Algeria
  • Tunisia
  • Egypt

General

• No major range-wide threats (Wacher et al. 2015)
  • Impacts of live animal trade (see below) may not yet be recognized (Harrington 2015)
• Populations stable in sandy areas away from human settlement (Asa et al. 2004; Wacher et al. 2015)

Commercial hunting and trade

• Trapped and/or sold in parts of North Africa for (Asa et al. 2004; Asa and Cuzin 2013, except as noted):
  • Photographic exhibition (for tourists) (Sillero-Zubiri 2009a)
  • Pet trade
  • Commercial trade (Harrington 2015)
  • Pups raised for food (Rosevear 1974; Schmidt-Nielsen 1979)
  • Fur and meat used by indigenous peoples of North Africa (Sillero-Zubiri 2009a)
• Imported to Middle East (Harrington 2015)

Habitat loss

• Some populations impacted by (Wacher et al. 2015):
  • Expansion of human settlement
  • Road construction
  • Commercial transport routes
  • Oil field development

Climate change

• Distribution of Fennec Fox in the North Sahara Desert predicted to contract (Karssene et al. 2017)
  • Suitable habitat area predicted to decrease by more than 40% between 2010s and 2050s (Karssene et al. 2017)

Hit by motor vehicles

• Population-level effects unknown; likely to increase as networks of roads in northern Africa are developed (Brito et al. 2009)

The fennec fox faces no range-wide threats but is impacted by wildlife trade and global warming.

Fennec foxes are trapped and traded for photo exhibition for tourists, as well as pet and commercial trade markets.

A 2017 study estimates that climate change will cause fennec fox habitat to contract by more than 40% by the 2050s.

Populations are stable in sandy areas away from human settlement.

Image credit: © San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. All rights reserved.