Arctic Fox

Truly a fox of a different color, the Arctic Fox is a master of changes. Two color phases exist. The more northerly "white" phase switches from a brown summer coat to a thick, warm winter coat of snowy white. The southerly or "blue" phase is dark bluish or charcoal gray in summer and somewhat lighter in winter.

Resourceful hunters, both phases need the change of colors as camouflage to help get close to their prey -- rodents such as lemmings, voles, and squirrels; birds and their eggs; and fish. They also eat berries in season, and scavenge on carrion. Northerly populations also eat leftovers from polar bear meals, the white color helping them hide from their predators: polar bears and people.

The species, Alopex lagopus, is well adapted for survival in the freezing Arctic habitat. They burrow into the snow or ground for protection from the cold, and store food in the underground permafrost during the summer to retrieve later for winter nourishment. Another useful adaptation is densely furred footpads that enable the foxes to travel over snow and ice.

Litters of 6-12 cubs are born in an underground den in spring. The family stays together through summer into fall; unlike polar bears, the males are participatory fathers, bringing food and guarding the den. Abundant in many areas, Arctic Fox numbers do not appear to be greatly affected by trapping; fur sales have declined in recent years, but are still important to the economy of some indigenous coastal villages. Populations are often closely tied to cyclic variations in lemming and vole numbers.