Bat-eared Fox

Hosts on Spekboom have recorded the Bat-eared Fox at stays in or beside Cederberg Wilderness Area, Rocherpan Nature Reserve, Agulhas National Park, Bontebok National Park, Karoo National Park and West Coast National Park. A record means a host has seen it on the property or nearby, which makes these the places to base yourself; it is never a guarantee of a sighting on any given day.

The Bat-eared Fox is most recorded in Northern Cape (40% of records), Western Cape (35% of records), Eastern Cape (14% of records), based on 815 iNaturalist observations. 18 places to stay on Spekboom in Western Cape have recorded the Bat-eared Fox on site or nearby.

The Bat-eared Fox is recorded throughout the year, so no month is the wrong month to look for it. For the parks where hosts record it most, these are the best seasons they give. Cederberg Wilderness Area: Sep-Apr, flowers Aug-Oct; Rocherpan Nature Reserve: Winter and spring for birds and flowers, Jun-Oct; Agulhas National Park: Sep-Apr, flowers Aug-Oct; Bontebok National Park: Sep-Apr, flowers Aug-Oct. In the dry months animals concentrate at water and the grass is short.

The Bat-eared Fox (Otocyon megalotis) is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

The bat-eared fox (Otocyon megalotis) is a species of fox found on the African savanna, named for its large ears, which are used for thermoregulation. Fossil records show this canid first appeared during the middle Pleistocene, about 800,000 years ago. It is considered a basal canid species, resembling ancestral forms of the family.