Names: English: Crab-eating fox, Crab-eating zorrocommon zorro, common fox, forest fox. Spanish: Zorro común, zorro de monte, zorro sabanero (Venezuela); zorro perro (Uruguay); Portuguese: raposa, cachorro de mata.

Description: Coat colour on back is grey-brown. Face, ears, and legs are rufous, throat and underbelly white. Tail tip, tips of ears, and back of legs are black. Within the species, there is much individual variation (Berta 1982). Head-and-body length: 64 cm (Langguth 1975). Tail length: 29 cm (Langguth 1975). Shoulder height: Unknown. Weight 5-8 kg.

Reproduction: Time of mating: November/December (Berta 1982). Gestation: 52-59 days. Litter size: 3-6. Lactation: approximately 90 days (Brady 1978). Age at sexual maturity: 9 months.

Social Behavior: Monogamous pairs or small groups, which often forage individually. Crepuscular/nocturnal. Occur at densities of 4 per km2 (Bisbal and Ojasti 1980). In Brazil loose-knit families of parents and their adult offspring of both sexes occupy 5-10 km2 territories.

Diet: Omnivorous. Diet may vary seasonally (Brady 1979) but includes insects, rodents, fruit, reptiles, birds, and, of course, crabs. Bisbal (1979) found remains of possum (Didelphis), but confirmed that the diet is extremely varied with fruit, insects, and small mammals being favoured. Both studies found seasonal variation in response to change in abundance. In a study of the trophic requirements of C. thous, Bisbal and Ojasti (1980) did not find any evidence of predation on livestock.

Distribution: Widely distributed through Colombia, Venezuela, Suriname, eastern Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, and northern Argentina.

Habitat: Savanna, Banos, and woodland. Many references state that the species is not found in the lowland rain forest of the Amazon basin (Berta 1982). However, J.M. Ayres (pers. comm.) notes that the species occurs in the forests of Brazil. It also occurs in lowland forest at sea level on Marajó Island, Brazil.

Population and Status: Widely distributed and common. In Venezuela, population densities are approximately 1 individual per 25 hectares (Eisenberg et al. 1979) and the species is common in all areas except Territorio Federal Amazonas, T.F. Delta Amacur, and Estado Nueva Esparta (Bisbal 1987).

Commercial Use: Hunted for pelt, although pelt has little value.

Other Threats: Occasionally shot by farmers and ranchers.