Exmoor Zoo welcomes pair of world's smallest foxes

• Keepers are asking the public for suggestions on names for the arrival of the world's smallest foxes.

A pair of fennec foxes have recently arrived at Exmoor Zoo.

The arrivals comes as part of a European fennec fox breeding programme.

The fennec foxes have their own purpose-built enclosure which was built two years ago, but the zoo have only just managed to acquire the foxes.

The breed is native to areas of North Africa, including Morocco, the Sahara Desert and Mauritania.

As nocturnal animals, fennec foxes live in underground burrows in the desert, which allows them to keep cool.

Their characteristic large ears also help to dispel heat and they have extra fur around the pads of their feet help to avoid the heat from the sand.

Otherwise known as the desert fox, their prey includes small rodents, snakes, lizards and insects such as grasshoppers and locusts.

Their move was originally planned two years ago, but in the meantime the zoo's armadillo and dwarf mongoose have been trying out their designed home.

Keepers at the zoo have started to consider names for them but have asked for suggestions from the public.

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