Comparative analysis of morphometrics of wild and farm foxes (Vulpes vulpes L.) – preliminary results

Abstract

Nowadays, an interesting aspect of animal farming is the possibility to analyze genetic, morphometric and behavioural changes in farm animals, which have taken place as a result of selective breeding. Then, the comparative analysis with wild animals can be done. Fur animals (fox, mink, raccoon dog) have relatively short history of domestication, so an interesting point is if this process affected body measurements of those species. The aim of the present study was to analyze and compare several body measurements of wild and farm foxes. The analyzed traits were: body weight, body length and circumference, tail length, ears height, length of front and hind limbs, length of front and hind feet. Farm animals were characterized by higher values of all traits (except tail length and ear height), than wild ones and these differences were statistically significant. Smaller differences between wild and captive populations were found for traits which were not crucial for species survival (e.g. tail length and ears height). Comparison between sexes showed that they differed in many size measurements, but measurements of females from the farm population and males from the wild population were comparable.