Espatial behaviour of the red fox in the Iberian southeast: analysis of translocations as biological control tool

Abstract

Due to the current social demands regarding wildlife management in relation to conflict mitigation, strategies are focused on low impact to the environment and ecosystem functioning based, such as biological control. In this study, we analysed the spatial behaviour of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), tracked with GPS collars and that were released in a different place where they were captured, with the aim of reducing the population of the wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in an agricultural environment. The result of the monitoring showed that 47.1% of the translocated foxes left the study area within an average of 12.6 ± 13.7 days, 35.3% unexpectedly ceased their GPS signal, 12.5% died within a few days of release and only one remained in the area where it was released (not translocated).The tracked individuals showed mainly nocturnal and twilight activity, varying among seasons. The estimated mean home range area was 44.3 ± 56.2 km², and the core of use was 9.7 ± 14.8 km². 49.2% of the locations were in areas of agricultural use, 46.6% in areas of natural vegetation, and 4.2% on urban-industrial land. Although our results suggest that translocations were not an effective measure to reduce rabbit populations, they have made it possible to gather information on the spatial behaviour of the fox in the Iberian southeast, a highly anthropized environment of transformed landscapes.