Spirit of the Sahara: My Quest for a Fox

Images and words by Bruno D’Amicis / naturepl.com Fennecs are the world’s smallest fox species, living in the world’s largest desert. They are extremely elusive, and their desert habitat is very difficult to explore. Dozens of sto- ries are told by nomadic populations to des- cribe the legendary cunning of this little fox and its ability to literally vanish among the dunes, even when chased by very fast Slou- ghi hounds (north African hunting dogs). Seeing a fennec fox in the wild was a dream from my childhood that took me 25 years to fulfil. I knew it was ambitious to try and pho- tograph them, but I could never have anti- cipated that these tiny, adorable foxes had a much deeper and more tragic story to tell. Fennec foxes are still very abundant, with a without ever drinking water, sourcing fluid range that covers almost all of north Afri- from their food instead. Their distinctive, ca and the Sahara, from Morocco through batlike ears radiate body heat and help keep to Egypt, as far south as northern Niger, the foxes cool while their paws are covered and into the Arabian Desert, as far east as in thick fur, which allows them to walk on Kuwait. They are perfectly adapted to life the hottest sand. With their long claws they in the harshest desert environments. Their can dig burrows to take shelter from the heat nocturnal habits help them deal with the during the day, or to escape predators in a searing heat of the desert and they can live matter of minutes. Fennec foxes can hear the click of a camera shutter from 150 metres away!

A beetle walks across the faint tracks left by a fennec during the night. The survival of the diminutive foxes is largely de- pendent on the presence and density of invertebrates and other prey species. Their sen- sitive hearing allows them to detect the footsteps of beetles even in the pitch black of the Saharan night.

The minute fennec weighs up to 1.5 kg as an adult and is only as big as your shoe. The long and fluffy tail accounts for nearly 60 per cent of the 30 - 40 cm body length. But the fennec’s most distinctive feature is surely its incredibly large, radar-shaped ears. Massive in proportion to the skull, the 15cm long pinnae are the largest ears in the animal kingdom, relative to body size. As well as dissipating body heat, the huge ears afford fennec foxes a highly developed sense of hearing, essential for locating their prey. In the silence of the desert, they can hear small mammals burrowing under the sand and even a beetle walking on the dunes. Just imagine how hard it is for a human to approach unnoticed! Fennecs can hear the click of a camera shutter from 150m away, so to say that such an animal is extremely diffi- cult to photograph is a giant understatement! [Left] Sun filtering through sand [Above] The hut I worked from during a severe sandstorm. was no more than 12 square met- res, with a rusty metal door and a [Below] The Sahara is not an easy window. Yet it afforded me, my as- place to travel in a vehicle. My car sistants and equipment with pro- would get stuck in the sand while tection from sandstorms, as well driving across the dunes. as constant access to freshwater.

The Sahara can be a very unforgiving envi- the fennec range on a horse-led cart and ronment. The scorching heat of summer carrying a traditional wool-woven nomad days contrasts with the freezing tempera- tent. It worked well until the first sandstorm. tures in winter. Scorpions and venomous In a few minutes sand was everywhere, and snakes move at night on the dunes and wind on everything! My assistants and I couldn’t is a constant threat. In just a few hours, a even keep our eyes open! We had to call a gentle breeze can develop into a fierce gale 4WD car for rescue and this took hours to that blows sand in every direction. arrive. Frustrated, we looked for a different During sandstorms, which can be very solution. Luck assisted us when we found a frequent in spring, fennecs shelter in their small concrete hut in a remote corner of the burrows and do not move around. And such Great Eastern Erg in southern Tunisia. Built conditions meant I could not even take my to offer cover to the keeper of a voltaic well, camera out in the open if I didn’t want to where semi-domestic camels were taken to damage it. This proved to be a serious logis- quench their thirst, I was able to shelter there tical problem for me while living in the de- and finally plan a longer presence in the field, sert environment. In fact, I first approached searching for fennecs. The unique biodiversity of the Sahara is fa- [Top Left] A Rhim or Slender-horned gazelle cing a tremendous crisis due to unmanaged (Gazella leptoceros loderi) on sand dunes, hunting and habitat destruction. In compa- Great Erg Oriental, Tunisia. This endangered rison to other ecosystems, the endangered species has suffered through habitat loss and fauna and flora of the desert doesn’t seem to warfare. It is hunted for meat and its horns make the news or draw much attention. are sold as ornaments.

[Left] Desert monitor (Varanus griseus) mo- [Above] A brown-necked raven (Corvus ving across sand dunes in the Sahara. Active ruficollis) sits atop a dune in the early mor- during the day, desert monitors range over ning. Dawn in the Sahara is magical, and I large distances, usually between 5-6km, re- was often greeted with scenes like this when turning to their burrow before sunset. I set out each day to look for fennecs. It took me three weeks to find the first den. One spring evening, a female emerged from her burrow and nursed her young pups, something that has maybe never been pho- tographed before. I can’t describe my exci- tement. If seeing a fennec fox was my child- hood dream, observing a whole family and the adorable pups at play was surely the best reward for all the intense effort.

Early every morning, I searched for the tracks left by fennec foxes. The faint pug marks are easily erased by the first gust of wind, so I couldn’t waste any time. I hoped to find a track that would eventually lead to a fennec burrow. It was the famous needle in a haystack, easier said than done. Over many days, we followed tracks that wandered for kilometres. Some led us to trash cans, camel dung or latrines. Others looped back on themselves, taking us back to our hut, where we’d left some food remains. More often, they would linger around rodent holes or bird nests. It was very frustrating. But luck finally smiled on us and we found a track that led us straight to our first den site. I knew how lucky I was to find my little “holy fennec behaviour on camera proved to be grail” and I was determined to protect the super hard. The secrecy of the adult female site, by keeping it a closely guarded secret. I and the unpredictable weather afforded me was extremely careful to avoid leading other just a handful of successful sessions with the people or predators to the den with my tracks foxes from all the many attempts I made. and approached the site always in the middle One time, a sandstorm kept me inside for 10 of the day, when the foxes were asleep, so days, and when I was finally able to emerge, I that I wouldn’t disturb them. discovered that the fennecs had moved their Despite this great breakthrough, capturing den and I had to track them again. Although you can sometimes see fennec foxes resting and playing on the warm sand during the day, they are primarily noctur- nal animals. They have good night vision, but perceive their dark environment mostly through a highly developed sense of smell and, above all, hearing. With the ability to filter sounds through many centimetres of sand, fennecs dig for small rodents, lizards, birds, eggs, and insects. They also feed on fruit, leaves and roots, which provide nearly all of their liquid intake. Despite being social animals, fennecs prefer to hunt alone and may roam large distances to locate their prey in the dark silence of the Sahara. Fennec foxes can navigate the desert at night invertebrate burrow in the desert, at the much more easily than people can! To pho- border between Tunisia and Algeria. After tograph their nocturnal habits, I had to use several nights of leaving the camera trap in camera trap set-ups, equipped with strobe place, a fox eventually tripped the infrared lights. It took me weeks just to figure out the beam. I later discovered that only one of the foxes’ routines and choose the right spots two strobes had fired, because gerbils had to place my equipment, but the results were gnawed the cables connecting the second hugely rewarding. The fox above took a self- one! Together with political unrest, sand portrait when it crossed the invisible infrared storms and poachers, this was just one of the beam of a camera trap placed along a trail I many challenges I faced while working with discovered through the desert dunes. the extremely elusive fennec, in one of the The image on the left was taken next to an planet’s most unrelenting environments. Vixens give birth only once each year, usual- ly to a relatively small litter of 2-4 pups. The pups are born blind and helpless, and the mother attends them continuously for the first two weeks. At four weeks, the pups be- gin to play within the den, and at five weeks, play extends to the area just outside the den entrance.

At the age of two months, fennec pups can already be seen digging in the sand for prey. Although fully weaned at about 60-70 days, fennec offspring require parental care for a much longer period. They are not fully inde- pendent until they reach 6-9 months of age. Little is known about predator - prey relation- ships in fennecs. They are thought to be preyed upon by monitor lizards [left], eagle owls [below] and jackals. Meanwhile, they are known to catch and feed on vipers [right]

[Above and Right] These pups near the en- trance of their den were only a few months old. At this age, the pups are especially vulne- rable to predators. Their sand-coloured fur helps them blend in with their environment, and their burrows are designed for quick escape, often connecting to extensive tunnel systems with multiple exits. Adult fennecs dig their burrows in concealed corners of the desert, in the firm sand underneath bushes. The roots of the plants help hold the sand together and provide additional support for the tunnel walls. Although it is unclear which animals prey on fennecs, their greatest enemy is undoubtedly humans. Being such an adaptable and intel- ligent animal, I was surprised by the wari- ness they showed, even in the remote parts of the desert, far away from people and sett- lements. They seemed not to tolerate human presence. I was about to discover why. We only have anecdotal information about tat destruction (such as the burning of shrubs the biology and behaviour of fennecs, and to make charcoal, reducing the root systems most of that comes from scientific research fennecs need to dig their burrows), as well as carried out on captive foxes. Despite knowing poaching. Fennec fur is prized by the people so little about them, the fennec’s charismatic of the Sahara - and the foxes are sometimes cuteness makes it a Saharan icon - as well as hunted and trapped by desert communities a favorite victim of the illegal pet trade across that consider them pests, though they rarely its whole range. It is also threatened by habi- pose a threat to people or domestic animals.

[Left] A cartoon fennec fox [Below] Considered a lucky known as ‘Labib’ was created charm, the tail of a fennec fox under the regime of Ben Ali as hangs from a Tunisian car’s a symbol for nature protection mirror. The fur is prized by in Tunisia. the people of north Africa.

[Top of page] An adult fennec [Above] Fennecs get their fox peers over a sand dune. name from the Arabic word Fennecs are elusive, fast, and fanak, meaning ‘fox’, written wary of humans, making them here alongside fennec tracks extremely difficult to track. in the sand. I photographed this fennec, named ‘Sultan’, in the market of Douz, a desert town in Tuni- sia. He was kept on a leash and offered up as a photo opportunity for tourists, who were asked to either pay for taking their pictures, or buy something from the shop. Although Sultan was caught in the wild as a pup, the owners of the shop told tourists that he was ‘domestic’.

Fennecs are somehow cursed by their own On the last day of my very first trip to Tuni- cuteness. Across their whole range in nor- sia, I was approached by a boy who tried to thern Africa, these animals get caught or sell me a fennec pup (see p.1). His worn-out trapped, be be sold as pets for as little as slippers and ragged appearance made me $70, or used as tourist attractions. Beside the immediately aware of the difficult conditions unacceptable conditions in which these cap- he was living in. After talking to the boy, I tive foxes are very often kept (underfed and discovered that he’d caught the pup himself, neglected), they do not belong in an urban by digging it out of its burrow in the desert. environment. It is desperately sad to think of He was completely unaware of the harm he an animal with such sensitive hearing being had caused to the pup. I firmly refused his placed into a busy market, full of people, ani- offer and tried instead to make the boy aware mals, motorcycles and cars. of the serious consequences of his act. Difficult socio-economic conditions, lack of of fennec foxes but also the threats to their education, and the turbulent political situa- conservation, I wanted to bring peoples’ at- tion in the Sahara region (particularly fol- tention to this unique species and the chal- lowing the recent Arab Spring uprisings), lenging human environment that makes have increased the illegal trade in fennec wildlife conservation in the Sahara such a foxes and other Saharan species. difficult task. Sometimes, traders or naïve tourists who The political situation meant that I frequent- have purchased a fennec fox pup try to ly encountered roadblocks and was subjected smuggle them across borders. If the pups to regular police checks on my camera equip- are discovered, they are confiscated and of- ment. For me, photojournalism is above all ten euthanized. A few still make it across to about documenting reality and raising awa- reach the black market and are sold as exotic reness. As disturbing as they might be, I pets in Europe, Asia and North America. hope my images will make people aware of By covering not only the natural history the ongoing crisis affecting Saharan wildlife.

This wild-caught pup was dug out of its den, along with its siblings. A young man and a camel driver (above) were showing the pups off at a camel trekking site, where they hoped to sell them or at least get paid for pictures.

The tail of a fennec fox dangles from the neck of a dromedary camel in Tunisia. The tails are used as good luck charms. Where there was once law enforcement against environmental crimes in many north African countries, they are all too often over- looked in today’s political landscape. Unrest and extreme poverty have blocked all envi- ronmental policies and education. Other rare Saharan species such as gazelles and houbara bustards are also suffering as a result. If crucial measures aren’t taken soon, including education of desert villagers, the fragile and truly unique fauna of the Saha- ra - especially in Tunisia, Algeria and Lybia, might be lost. Tourists must also share in this responsibility, by not paying to pose with This fennec was captured as an adult, and fennec pups, or to watch a snake charmer, kept in a busy Tunisian market (souk). For an for instance. animal whose senses are finely tuned to the silence of the desert, the chaos of an urban environment is torture. The animal showed clear signs of distress. It had patches of fur missing and spent most of its time hiding behind carpets and other items. It died a few days after these pictures were taken. In a small village in the Tunisian Sahara, I it illegally. Although the young owner truly pets. I asked him to at least provide it with came across this fennec that had been kept loved his pet, the animal was very stressed a longer leash and take it outside for walks for a year on a leash, tied to a wheel hub in and underfed. sometimes. Even though I knew that the ani- a small sheep pen. With barely any room to I photographed it on two separate occasions mal had spent too much time in captivity move, it was too weak to walk by itself, but it and only for very brief periods of time, so as and had little chance of surviving in the wild, often tried to burrow into the sand floor, both to not to add more stress to its situation. I I was relieved when I heard some time later to escape people and the animals sharing resolutely refused to pay a fee to take these that the owner had released it. Nobody has the pen with it. I found out that it had been pictures and thereby support this practice seen it since and I like to think that it found caught in the wild as a pup by some desert and I pleaded with the owner to release it, its way back to its natural habitat, however nomads and then given to a kid, who kept explaining the cruelty of keeping fennecs as remote that possibility may seem. I wish I never had to witness the sad situa- tions of captive fennecs, and was instead left to treasure the precious moments I had wat- ching them among the silent and ephemeral dunes, but I firmly believe their story is one worth telling in its entirety. We desperately need to raise awareness about the future of Saharan nature and I believe that there is no better ambassador for it than the amazing fennec fox.

Buno D’Amicis has a background in animal ecology and specialises in photographing wild animals in their natural habitat. He worked exten- sively in southern Tuni- sia to document the natural history of the fennec fox, as well as the threats they face through trade and exploitation. ‘The image of a fennec I found in a book when I was just a boy shaped my future,’ he says, ‘I promised myself that one day I would search for that special fox among the dunes of the Sahara.’ Contact: [email protected] +44(0)117 911 4675