Bhanupriya Chettiar 806
Ms. Berry

Ecosystems Issues Assignment
Introduced Species - The Red fox
Introduction
The vulpes vulpes or other words known as the red fox, was introduced to Australia in the early 1870s for recreational hunting purposes. The spread of the red foxes were closely followed by the distribution of other pests for example, rabbits. Today, these vicious creatures are found in most mainland areas South of the tropics and, unfortunately, are even believed to have been deliberately distributed to Tasmania. (Animal Control Technologies, 2013)

Biology
Introducing red foxes into Australia increased the biodiversity of the animals. They helped keep the population of some pests intact.
The red fox is important in the energy flow …show more content…
One of the main reasons that the species was distributed into different parts of Australia was to keep the number of small mammals, for example rodents, in check. You would think that these mammals would become extinct but they won't because they can breed faster than foxes eating them. This can provide benefits to farmers, ranchers and urban dwellers because they usually have a big rodent problem in their fields. This is why where it is found, it is known as a keystone predator for some of its natural range.
This feral also provides balance from the ecological point of view. It contributes to the economy by the legal and regulated trapping and trafficking its fur in some areas of Australia. Thankfully, this has lessened in the past few years. (Jean Bartels, 2002)
Also, as I stated before in the biology section, we need foxes to help balance the ecosystem. Without them the energy flow will be thrown out of order and the ecosystem will become disordered. As well as that, we need them to increase the biodiversity.

Arguments …show more content…
In their menu are birds, small mammals and reptiles. The red foxes have endangered and even made some animals extinct. They contribute alongside other pests and also the impact that humans have had on the ecosystem. A red fox will eat about 400 grams a night. A third of their diet comes from the farm livestock, a third from other pests and a third from wild animals. This is occasionally not the case though. If lambs are available they will make up 100% of there diet. In uncontrolled areas, foxes have caused lamb losses of 10% to 30%. Sometimes it can be as high as 50%. It has been reported that foxes have been feeding one calves, cows with birth difficulty, deer, ostrich, emu chicks and poultry. (Animal Control Technologies,