Fennec foxes (Vulpes zerda) are the smallest foxes found in Egypt. The label "Desert Fox" applies to no other fox species as accurately as it does to this creature.
Fennecs are found in stictly sandy desert habitats in Egypt especially the Western Desert. It has been seen in Fayyum and Wadi El Rayyan but sightings there are relatively rare. Closer to Cairo, this fox is common in Wadi Degla - the natural protectorate on the edge of Maadi - but, as is the case with most Wadi Degla wildlife, the fox is nocturnal and you might never see it except at dusk or at night, particularly around the visitors' center where it scavenges rubbish. Desert campers sometimes delightedly report their camps being approached by individual fennecs attracted by the smell of barbecued meet. These foxes are harmless, but you will be deprived of their presence near your camp if you try to go too close.
Fennecs are very small, uniformly pale in colour and have very large triangular ears for which they are famous. Their faces are somewhat darker than the main body but they are palest at the cheeks, chin and inside of the ears. They have quite a bushy tail (but not as full as the Blanford's Fox's discussed later) with a pointy, black tip (the pointiest of Egypt's foxes).
The size of this fox, its large ears and its small, pointed muzzle gave it the "cute" factor which has sadly landed it in the pet trade around the world...
The Fennec - another precious Egyptian wild fox!
References
Hoath, Richard (2003). A Field Guide to the Mammals of Egypt. The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo.
Hoath, Richard (2003). A Field Guide to the Mammals of Egypt. The American University in Cairo Press, Cairo.
