How big does a Fennec fox get? Here is an overview over the average adult age:
A grown Fennec fox (Vulpes zerda) reaches an average size of 37.5 cm (1′ 3″).
When born, they have an average size of 0 cm (0′ 0″). During their lifetime of about 14.58 years, they grow from 28 grams (0.06 lbs) to 1.32 kg (2.91 lbs). A Fennec fox has 2 babies at once. The Fennec fox (genus: Vulpes) is a member of the family Canidae.
As a reference: Humans reach an average body size of 1.65m (5′ 5″) while carrying 62 kg (137 lbs). A human woman is pregnant for 280 days (40 weeks) and on average become 75 years old.
The fennec fox (Vulpes zerda), also called fennec or desert fox, is a small crepuscular fox native to the Sahara Desert, the Sinai Peninsula, Arava desert South West Israel, and the Arabian desert. Its most distinctive feature is its unusually large ears, which also serve to dissipate heat. Its name comes from this species’ name in Arabic: fanak (فَنَك). The fennec is the smallest species of canid. Its coat, ears, and kidney functions have adapted to high-temperature, low-water, desert environments. Also, its hearing is sensitive enough to hear prey moving underground. It mainly eats insects, small mammals, and birds.The fennec has a life span of up to 14 years in captivity and about 10 years in the wild. Its main predators are the African varieties of eagle owl, jackals, and other large mammals. Families of fennecs dig out dens in the sand for habitation and protection, which can be as large as 120 m2 (1,292 sq ft) and adjoin the dens of other families. Precise population figures are not known but are estimated from the frequency of sightings; these indicate that the animal is currently not threatened by extinction. Knowledge of social interactions is limited to information gathered from captive animals. The species is usually assigned to the genus Vulpes; however, this is debated due to differences between the fennec fox and other fox species. The fennec’s fur is prized by the indigenous peoples of North Africa, and in some parts of the world, the animal is considered an exotic pet.
Animals of the same family as a Fennec fox
We found other animals of the Canidae family:
- Golden jackal with a size of 83 cm (2′ 9″)
- Red wolf with a size of 1.08 meter (3′ 7″)
- Hoary fox with a size of 60 cm (2′ 0″)
- Corsac fox with a size of 58 cm (1′ 11″)
- Crab-eating fox with a size of 65 cm (2′ 2″)
- Rüppell’s fox with a size of 46 cm (1′ 7″)
- Red fox with a size of 62.9 cm (2′ 1″)
- Bat-eared fox with a size of 53.8 cm (1′ 10″)
- Wolf with a size of 1.06 meter (3′ 6″)
- Island fox with a size of 47.2 cm (1′ 7″)
Animals with the same size as a Fennec fox
Not that size really matters, but it makes things comparable. So here are a couple of animals that are as big as Fennec fox:
- Red-bellied titi with a size of 35.8 cm (1′ 3″)
- Menzbier’s marmot with a size of 45 cm (1′ 6″)
- Northern Luzon giant cloud rat with a size of 38.2 cm (1′ 4″)
- Jamaican coney with a size of 37.8 cm (1′ 3″)
- Striped polecat with a size of 33.5 cm (1′ 2″)
- Gray-bellied night monkey with a size of 30.5 cm (1′ 1″)
- Ring-tailed vontsira with a size of 35.2 cm (1′ 2″)
- Stein’s cuscus with a size of 42.4 cm (1′ 5″)
- Red and white giant flying squirrel with a size of 41 cm (1′ 5″)
- Riverine rabbit with a size of 43 cm (1′ 5″)
Animals with the same litter size as a Fennec fox
Here is a list of animals that have the same number of babies per litter (2) as a Fennec fox:
- Guyenne spiny rat
- Greater stick-nest rat
- African black shrew
- Golden-backed tree-rat
- Dark-footed mouse shrew
- Van Deusen’s rat
- Chinese ferret-badger
- Oecomys bicolor
- Golden spiny mouse
- Common marmoset
Animals with the same life expectancy as a Fennec fox
Completely different animals, but becoming as old as a Fennec fox:
- Servaline genet with an average maximal age of 17 years
- Heterohyrax antineae with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Spectral tarsier with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Red slender loris with an average maximal age of 16.33 years
- Markhor with an average maximal age of 14 years
- American red squirrel with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Brown mouse lemur with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Rock hyrax with an average maximal age of 14 years
- Pygmy hog with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Nubian ibex with an average maximal age of 17 years
Animals with the same weight as a Fennec fox
As a comparison, here are some other animals that weight as much as the Vulpes zerda:
- Banded mongoose with a weight of 1.26 kilos (2.78 lbs)
- Grizzled giant squirrel with a weight of 1.33 kilos (2.93 lbs)
- Grandidier’s mongoose with a weight of 1.4 kilos (3.09 lbs)
- Nabarlek with a weight of 1.4 kilos (3.09 lbs)
- Platypus with a weight of 1.48 kilos (3.26 lbs)
- Cream-coloured giant squirrel with a weight of 1.16 kilos (2.56 lbs)
- Seven-banded armadillo with a weight of 1.53 kilos (3.37 lbs)
- Alexander’s kusimanse with a weight of 1.5 kilos (3.31 lbs)
- Emin’s pouched rat with a weight of 1.28 kilos (2.82 lbs)
- Red acouchi with a weight of 1.25 kilos (2.76 lbs)