Thanks to everybody who participated in the first round of March Species Madness, whittling down our 32 species to 16. I hope everybody is enjoying themselves so far and nobody is too upset over some of the losses. There is no dishonour in participating and losing out, in this tournament. All of these species at rare contribute to their ecosystems in critical ways, and deserve their space. The Virginia opossium is a charming creature that eats and keeps control of ticks, for instance, and our world would be a lot less clean and healthy were it not for the work that turkey vultures do, so let’s protect natural spaces for all of the species of this tournament, and beyond.
Our first match of round two pits the Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) against the Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus). The red fox is our defending champion, but it narrowly escaped defeat against the Virginia opossum, winning by just one vote (anything can happen in this tournament). The red fox may be getting by on its beauty, but it is an adaptable and athletic creature with surprises up its sleeve. Did you know that red foxes have ultrasonic hearing? Maybe not so surprising given their similarities to dogs, but their hearing is the best of any mammal, so good they can hear a tiny mouse squeak from 100 feet away (see more interesting red fox facts here).
The red fox needs its abilities to survive because its prey are often well adapted to escape from them. The eastern cottontail rabbit can smell danger, with over 100 million scent receptors in its nose, which they twitch to make the best use of. They can hop away at 18 miles an hour, moving in a rapid zig-zag pattern to frustrate chasers, and if that doesn’t work, they can freeze in place using their camouflage to hide them, and if that doesn’t work, don’t count out the eastern cottontail just yet. Its teeth can provide a painful bite, and those legs which can carry them away so fast can deliver a heck of a kick (learn more eastern cottontail facts here)!
The winner of this matchup goes to the.quarterfinals, happening next week. The loser retires to its burrow or den to salve its ego. Help us ensure that these creatures have a burrow or den to retire to, by protecting natural spaces with your donation today, and cast your vote below: