THE ARCTIC FOX Where the Arctic Fox lives Range: Northern and western Alaska and Canada

Northern Canada south to northern Northwest Territories, northeast Alberta, northern Manitoba, northern Quebec, Russia, and Greenland; a few records indicate presence farther south. What food the Arctic Fox eats Diet: Arctic fox feed primarily on small mammals, including lemmings and tundra voles. Fox denning near rocky cliffs along the seacoast often depend heavily on nesting seabirds such as auklets, puffins, and murres. The adaptations for survival in the Arctic The arctic fox's adaptation to its subzero habitat include a compact body with short legs, short ears, dense fur, and thickly haired foot pads, which insulate against the cold and provide traction on ice. The problems faced by the Arctic Fox due to Global Warming When the sea freezes over in the winter, the fox scavenges for it's food by often following a polar bear and eating their leftovers. With the sea ice melting due to global warming and the ozone hole above the arctic, the polar bears are struggling to survive, making it more difficult for the Arctic fox to find food in the winter. Lemmings are 90% of the fox's food during summertime, and lemmings eat mostly tundra plants, which are both dying out. With the rising temperatures in the arctic, tundra plants as well as lemmings, are struggling to survive because they have adapted to the cold weather. Therefore, because the Arctic fox depends on the lemmings for food during the summertime, this is a key factor to the Arctic foxes survival. PCB's or polychlorinated biphenyls affect the Arctic fox's immune, enzyme, hormone and reproductive systems. PCB's are a chemical that were put into the Arctic accidentally by humans, and because the foxes are high up in the food chain, they can have a large amount of PCB's in their system.

Webliography: http://drake.marin.k12.ca.us/academics/rock/fox.htm http://library.thinkquest.org/3500/