The Arctic fox needs to conserve all the heat it can, thus cannot afford to have the large ears of other species of fox. The Arctic fox can sometimes be considered a scavenger, following the polar bear across the wild and eating his leftovers. Similar to the habits of the jackal following the lion, the Arctic fox must be careful when scavenging behind the polar bear as they are definitely a part of the polar bear s diet. In especially hard times, the Arctic fox will even depend on the droppings of the polar bear to survive. However, this is not the only way the Arctic fox survives.
Lemmings are another food source for the Arctic fox.
In fact, the lemming population is usually a direct factor in the size of the fox population, the more foxes there are, the less lemmings survive that year. Also on the menu of the Arctic fox are the local birds and eggs. The have become so skilled at hunting its feathered neighbors, that only those bird who have developed special defense mechanisms against the fox can hope to survive long in his neighborhood. The Arctic fox will usually lives in burrows it has dug into the side of a hill or cliff. During particularly rough blizzards, he may even dig directly into the snow to create a burrow for shelter.