Head to head
Arctic Fox vs Red Fox
These two foxes are close relatives in the genus Vulpes, but they are shaped by opposite pressures. The arctic fox is built to hold heat on open tundra, small and round with tiny ears and furred paws. The red fox is the most widespread wild carnivore on Earth, a lean generalist that lives everywhere from deserts to city centres. Where their ranges now meet in the far north, the red fox usually wins.
| Arctic Fox | Red Fox | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Vulpes lagopus | Vulpes vulpes |
| Weight | 3 to 5 kg | 5 to 7 kg |
| Body shape | Compact; short ears, muzzle, and legs | Lean; long ears, muzzle, and legs |
| Coat | Seasonal: white in winter, brown-grey in summer | Rufous year-round, white tail tip |
| Feet | Soles densely furred (lagopus means hare-foot) | Soles bare |
| Cold tolerance | Does not shiver until about -70C | Hardy but far less extreme |
| Range | Circumpolar Arctic tundra and sea ice | Most of the Northern Hemisphere; introduced to Australia |
| Where they overlap | Losing ground; retreating to the coast and high Arctic | Dominant; expanding north with a warming climate |
Arctic Fox vs Red Fox: common questions
How does the arctic fox survive Arctic winters?
With insulation and economy. Its winter coat has the lowest thermal conductance measured in any mammal, a dense underfur and long guard hairs that trap a deep layer of still air, and the fur extends onto the soles of the feet. Its compact shape, with short ears, a short muzzle, and short legs, reduces the surface area losing heat. It can drop its metabolism and curl up with its bushy tail wrapped over its face to wait out storms, and it caches food in the brief summer to survive the winter. Studies show a resting arctic fox stays comfortable down to about minus 40 degrees Celsius without raising its metabolism at all, and does not shiver until around minus 70.
Why is the red fox spreading north into arctic fox territory?
Mostly because the Arctic is getting warmer and more productive. Milder winters, more shrubs and trees advancing onto former tundra, and more human settlements with food waste all favour the larger, more adaptable red fox, which was previously held back by cold and scarce food. As red foxes push north they come into direct contact with arctic foxes, and the red fox is big enough to kill the smaller species and to evict it from the large, ancient den sites that arctic foxes depend on. In parts of Scandinavia, culling red foxes is now used as a conservation measure to protect the endangered local arctic fox population.
Do arctic foxes really follow polar bears?
Yes. On the sea ice, arctic foxes shadow polar bears at a safe distance and scavenge the remains of seals the bears kill, which can be an important winter food source when lemmings and other prey are scarce or buried under hard snow. It is a risky living, since a bear will kill a fox that comes too close, but the leftovers from a bear's kill are far more than the fox could catch itself. Arctic foxes have been tracked travelling enormous distances over the ice, sometimes thousands of kilometres in a year, partly in the course of this scavenging life.