title: Comparative nutrient digestibility of arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) on Svalbard and farm-raised blue foxes (Alopex lagopus).
abstract: Arctic foxes from Svalbard (n=4) and farmed blue foxes (n=4) was used in a digestibility experiment with a high-carbohydrate feed to add more information to the nutritional physiology of the arctic fox, and to compare its digestive capacity with that of the farmed blue fox. The arctic fox has a diet containing mainly protein and fat from mammals and birds, while farmed blue foxes have been exposed to an omnivorous dietary regime for more than 80 generations. The experiment showed in general no difference in digestive capacity for protein and fat between the foxes (P>0.05), but for carbohydrates, including starch and glucose, the blue fox revealed higher digestibility values. The superior digestive capacity for carbohydrates in blue fox might be a result of a long-term selection of animals digesting dietary carbohydrates more efficiently, or that an early age exposition to dietary carbohydrates has given permanent improvement of the carbohydrate digestion in the gut.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, Agricultural University of Norway, PO Box 5025, N-1432, As, Norway. oystein.ahlstrom@ihf.nlh.no
authors.forename: Øystein
authors.initials: Ø
authors.lastname: Ahlstrøm
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fuglei
authors.forename: Liv Torunn
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Mydland
mesh_terms: D000596:Amino Acids / Q000494:pharmacology; D000821:Animal Feed; D000824:Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D000818:Animals; D001110:Arctic Regions; D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates / Q000494:pharmacology; D004044:Dietary Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology; D004063:Digestion / Q000502:physiology*; D004435:Eating; D005243:Feces; D005589:Foxes / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D009664:Norway; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates; D004044:Dietary Proteins