&EPA
The San Joaquin kit fox is
an endangered species.
Endangered species are plants
and animals that are in
immediate danger of
becoming extinct.
Threatened species are plants
and animals whose population
numbers are so low that they
may become endangered in the
future.
The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA)
Endangered Species Protection
Program (ESPP) will help
ensure that pesticide use does
not jeopardize the survival of
listed species.
Yultm wiaorffik WMtica.

San Joaquin Kit Fox VtUp&s ¦mAcrcrtk imvtloi
Description and Ecology
Status Endangered, listed March 11, 1967.
Critical Habitat Not designated.
Appearance The average male San Joaquin kit fox
measures about 32 inches in length (of which 12 inches is the
length of its tail). It stands 12 inches high at the shoulder,
and weighs about 5 pounds. The female is a little smaller.
The San Joaquin kit fox is the smallest canid species in North
America (but the largest kit fox subspecies). Its foot pads
are also small and distinct from other canids in its range,
averaging 1.2 inches long and 1 inch wide. The legs are long,
the body slim, and the large ears are set close together. The
nose is slim and pointed. The tail, typically carried low and
straight, tapers slightly toward its distinct black tip.
The coat colors of San Joaquin kit foxes vary by range and
season. Simply, the summer coats are tan and the winter
coats are greyed. The colors will actually range from buff, tan,
and yellowish-grey to grizzled. Black guard hairs contribute to
the grizzled appearance. The body undersides vary from buff
to white. The external ear flap is dark on the back sides while
the ear's forward-inner border and base has distinct white
hairs.
Range The San Joaquin kit fox inhabited much of
California's San Joaquin Valley prior to 1930. Its range
extended from southern Kern County north to eastern Contra
Costa County on the Valley's west side and to Stanislaus
County on the east side. By 1930 its range may have been
reduced to half, mostly in the southern and western San
Joaquin Valley and foothills. In 1979 only 6.7% of land south
of Stanislaus County remained undeveloped. Today the San
Joaquin kit fox inhabits a highly fragmented landscape of
scattered remnants of native habitat and adoptable, altered
lands within and on the fringe of development. The largest
extant populations are in western Kern County on and around
the Elk Hills and Buena Vista Valley and in the Carrizo Plain
Natural Area in San Luis Obispo County. The most northerly
Agency
current distribution records include the Antioch area of
Contra Costa County.
Habitat Because the San Joaquin kit fox requires dens
for shelter, protection and reproduction, a habitat's soil
type is important. Loose-textured soils are preferable, but
modification of the burrows of other animais facilitates
denning in other soil types. The historical native vegetation of
the Valley was largely annual grassland ("California Prairie")
and various scrub and subshrub communities. Vernal pool,
alkali meadows and playas still provide support habitat, but
have wet soils unsuitable for denning. Some of the habitat
has been converted to an agricultural patchwork of row
crops, vineyards, orchards and pasture. Other habitat has
been converted to urban areas and roads, wind farms, and
oil fields. San Joaquin kit foxes can use small remnants of
native habitat interspersed with development provided there
is minimal disturbance, dispersal corridors, and sufficient
prey-base.
Reproduction and Life Cycle San Joaquin kit foxes
can breed at one year of age. The male and female may stay
together the full year but may not necessarily den together.
Home ranges vary from 1 to 12 square miles. Each kit fox
may use several dens in a season and change dens often.
In September and October, the female focuses on preparing
the pupping den. Mating can occur from December to March,
and the pups will be born after a 48-52 day gestation period.
The male will provide most of the female's food while she is
lactating.
The pups venture outside of their den for the first time when
they are a little more than a month old. Though the San
Joaquin kit fox is nocturnal, the pups may play just outside
their den in the late afternoon. When 4-5 months old they
disperse. On occasion offspring of either sex may remain to
assist in the rearing of next year's litter.
Office of Pesticide Programs (7507P)
http://www.epa.gov/espp/
February 2010

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uui Kit Fox
Reproductive success depends upon prey availability. The
prey of the San Joaquin kit fox varies between the north,
central, and southern sections of the Valley depending upon
what is most available. Prey species include California ground
squirrels, white-footed mice, kangaroo rats, pocket mice,
San Joaquin antelope squirrels, black-tailed hares, desert
cottontails, ground-nesting birds, chukar, and insects. Some
vegetation, mostly grass, is also eaten. Life expectancy is 7 or
8 years in the wild.
Other predators such as the red or gray foxes, coyotes,
bobcats and large raptors compete with the San Joaquin kit
fox for the limited available prey. The red fox is a non-native
species and is expanding its range in central California. The
fact that it is a direct competitor and perhaps predator of the
kit fox may be mitigated by the negative impact on the red
fox by coyote. Coyotes, however, are sometimes predators of
the San Joaquin kit fox as well.
Recovery Plan The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(FWS) developed a recovery plan for upland species of the
San Joaquin Valley, California in 1998. The San Joaquin
kit fox is included in this Recovery plan. Recovery plans
outline reasonable actions that FWS believes are required
to recover or protect listed species. FWS prepares recovery
plans, sometimes with the assistance of recovery teams,
contractors, state agencies, and others. Recovery plans do
not necessarily represent the views nor the official positions
or approvals of any individuals or agencies, other than FWS,
involved in the plan formulation. Approved recovery plans are
subject to modification as dictated by new findings, changes
in species' status, and the completion of recovery tasks.
San Joaquin Kit Fox Information Sources
Primary Reference Beacham, Walton, Castronova,
Frank F., and Sessine, Suzanne (eds.), 2001. Beacham's
Guide to the Endangered Species of North America, Gale
Group, New York. Vol. I, pp. 47-50.
Listing Notice U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1967.
Federal Register 32.
http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/federal_register/frl8.pdf
Recovery Plan U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1998.
Recovery Plan for Upland Species of the San Joaquin Valley,
California. 340 pp.
http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/980930a.pdf
Species Account U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office, http://www.fws.gov/
sacramento/es/animal_spp_acct/sj_kit_fox.pdf
Califerfua. ground. sqiuwei/John, J. KAow&so, NBII Image Gallery
Carrv^o Plain / © 2006Steve Matron
Sott Jocwjiuft kit fox, jrniUy / B. Movie Petersen, US FWS Image Library
SEPA

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