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Wildlife Monographs

Red Fox Predation on Breeding Ducks
in Midcontinent North America

Tables

Table 11. Estimated number of dabbling ducks taken by red foxes in 2 physiographic regions comprising Barnes, Kidder, and Stutsman counties, North Dakota, during the fox denning seasons, 1969-73.

Area & Year Predation rate
(surface ducks/den)		 Ducks/fox
familya		 Total fox
familiesb		 Total ducks
taken		 Ducks/km2
Drift Plain (7304 km2)
1969 2.94 65.9 219 14432 1.98
1970 1.65 37.0 365 13505 1.85
1971 0.72 16.1 730 11753 1.61
1972 1.27 28.5 657 18725 2.56
1973 0.78 17.5 803 14053 1.92
Avg.   33.0   14494 1.98
Missouri Coteau (6224 km2)
1969 2.58 57.8 373 21559 3.46
1970 2.00 44.8 498 22310 3.58
1971 1.59 35.6 622 22143 3.56
1972 1.92 43.0 871 37453 6.02
1973 1.13 25.3 996 25199 4.05
Avg.   41.3   25733 4.13
Combined area (13528 km2)
1969     592 35991 2.66
1970     863 35815 2.65
1971     1352 33896 2.51
1972     1528 56178 4.15
1973     1799 39252 2.90
Avg.       40326 2.97

aDerived by multiplying the annual predation rate by the expansion factor of 22.4. The expansion factor accounts for ducks at dens that were not detectable in surface remains, ducks taken by foxes but not found at dens, and average number of dens used by fox families to rear litters.
bPopulation estimate is based on fox family densities provided in Table 10.

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