Arctic Fox: Life at the Top of the World
*Starred Review* The cover of this book sells it: a small fur ball of a white fox, gazing at the viewer with black shoe-button eyes as he stands on a wind-whipped ice floe. The reader’s immediate question—how can such a cute animal survive in such a harsh environment?—is amply explained in this marvelous new study of an animal few of us have ever seen outside the pages of a magazine. Arctic foxes are sublimely adapted for life in the polar region, possessing a fur coat that no other animal can match in terms of insulating properties and covering even the soles of their feet. Arctic foxes are ubiquitous around the North Pole, having been found on every land mass and even on the permanent polar ice. Journalist Hamilton covers the ecology and life cycle of this little fox, which has conquered one of the planet’s most extreme climates. Hunting lemmings under packed snow, following reindeer herds on their migration, raising pups to independence in the three-month Arctic summer, and always looking for the next meal and eating whatever they can find, the behavior of the arctic fox makes for fascinating reading. One of the most interesting aspects of the fox’s life is its ability to link up with polar bears and scavenge on their kills, behavior that Hamilton devotes an entire chapter to. Exquisitely illustrated with Rosing’s photos, this is an intriguing look at a little-known animal. --Nancy Bent