Big Eared Fox

Big Eared Fox Skull Replica measures 4.4 inches. Big Eared Fox Skull Replica is museum quality polyurethane cast, 2-part skull (separate cranium and jaw). Made in USA. Known as Bat Eared Fox.

Big Eared Fox is a species of fox found on the African savanna, named for its large ears, which are used for thermoregulation. Although not commonly used, other vernacular names include Black-eared fox, Long-eared fox, Delalande’s fox, and Motlosi.

Bat-eared foxes are relatively small canids, ranging in weight from 3 kg to 5.3 kg. Head and body length is 46–66 cm, tail length is 23–34 cm, shoulder height is 30–40 cm, and the notably large ears are 11–13 cm longare relatively small canids, ranging in weight from 3 kg to 5.3 kg.

The Head and body length is 46–66 cm, tail length is 23–34 cm, shoulder height is 30–40 cm, and the notably large ears are 11–13 cm long.

Fossil records show this canid first appeared during the middle Pleistocene, about 800,000 years ago.

They are considered a basal canid species, resembling ancestral forms of the family, It has also been called a Sub-Saharan African version of a Fennec Fox due to their huge ears.

This is a distinctive fox skull in several ways, with an elevated cranium and pronounced temporal ridges. Perhaps the most interesting feature is the dentition, this fox uniquely (among foxes) possessing 48 teeth. The molars and carnassials are reduced in size and simplified compared to other canids, probably as an adaptation to a largely insectivorous diet.

Big Eared Fox has tawny fur with black ears, legs, and parts of the pointed face. It averages 22 in. in length (head and body), with ears 5.1 in. long.

The Big Eared Fox is predominantly an insectivore that uses its large ears to locate its prey. About 80 to 90 percent of their diet is harvester termites.

When this particular species of termite is not available, they feed on other species of termites and have also been observed consuming other arthropods such as ants, beetles, crickets, grasshoppers, millipedes, moths, scorpions, spiders, birds, small mammals, reptiles, and fungi are consumed as well. The insects they eat fulfill the majority of their water intake needs.

The teeth of are much smaller and reduced in shearing surface formation than teeth of other canid species. This is an adaptation to its insectivorous diet. Otocyon megalotis is an old species that was widely distributed in the Pleistocene era.

The teeth are not the Big Eared Foxes only morphological adaptation for its diet. On the lower jaw, a step-like protrusion, called the subangular process, anchors the large digastric muscle to allow for rapid chewing. The digastric muscle is also modified to open and close the jaw five times per second.