The korsak

The korsak, or steppe fox – is a predatory mammal of the genus of foxes of the canid family.

Korsak is widespread in the steppes and semi-deserts of Kazakhstan. It lives in hilly areas with low vegetation, where there is little snow or with a dense snow cover in winter. t is less common in the forest-steppe zone, it enters the foothills. He avoids dense vegetation, forests and plowed fields. The area of an individual plot can reach 35-40 km2; there is a network of burrows, trails, places of smell marking on it. It is extremely rare to be an albino.

Korsak is similar to an ordinary fox, but much smaller (body is 50-60 cm, tail length -25-35 cm). It has larger ears and longer limbs. The height at the withers is about 30 cm. Weight-4-6 kg. The muzzle is short, strongly pointed; the cheekbones are wide; the ears are large, wide at the base, pointed to the ends.

The usual color is light, gray or reddish-gray, there are shades of red; the belly is whitish or yellowish, the tip of the tail is dark brown or black, the chin is light. in winter, the fur is long and lush, in summer – short and adjacent. In winter, a gray coating is noticeable near the Korsak ridge. In this case, the fox color is white due to the complete absence of the melanin pigment.