九州におけるホンドギツネの巣穴について-1-巣穴とその分布状態

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1. During April 1966 and October 1969, 44 examples of the burrows of Japanese fox, Vulpes vulpes japonica GRAY, 1868, were investigated at Kaito, Ogawa Machi and Yabe Machi, Kumamoto Pref., Kyushu. In the following description, K area is a hilly part of 50-100 m alt. consisting of coppices, orange orchards and farms, and Y area a hilly part of 400-700 m alt., containing coppices, fields, and farms. 2. Table 1 (K area) shows that only in 3 cases out of 17, the foxes dag holes in the ground and in the rest of 14 cases, natural crevices were utilized. This is because in K area there were many crevices in the rocks which could be easily scratched by fox's nail. Moreover, these were hard for their enemies to invade. As shown in table 2 (Y area), however, holes were dug in the ground in 26 cases out of 27; 5 cases in the coppices, 19 in the fields, 2 in the banks. Only in one example they utilized the crevices. The reason why they dag many burrows in the fields may be due to the fact that from the surface to about 30 cm of depth, roots of tiny bamboo, bracken and other weeds clinged together acting as leakage and thus protected them from the enemies. The scarcity of crevices in Y area may also be one of the reasons. 3. The number of entrances of the burrow in K area was from 1 to 13, average 3.4. In Y area in was 1 to 12, average 4.9. 4. As indicated in Fig. 1, 2, there was a similar tendency that burrows were dug close with each other. The following may explain this. In the both districts, there were scattered houses with constant danger of man and dog, and when threatened, they must hide themselves immediately or protect their young. Several observations proved that when they were attacked by dog or disturbed by, farmers, cattle or fire (experimentally), they changed the burrow and shifted the young to a safe one. Fo this purpose, their grouped burrows apparently had advantage.
日本哺乳類学会の論文

九州におけるホンドギツネの巣穴について-1-巣穴とその分布状態

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