Its most distinctive feature is its unusually large ears, which serve to dissipate heat and listen for underground prey.

Precise population figures are not known but are estimated from the frequency of sightings; these indicate that the fennec fox is currently not threatened by extinction.

The fennec fox is commonly trapped for exhibition or sale in North Africa, and it is considered an exotic pet in some parts of the world.

[3][4][2] In 1788, Johann Friedrich Gmelin gave the species the synonym of Canis cerdo with the type locality being the Sahara Desert.

[5] A few years later, Friedrich Albrecht Anton Meyer assigned the name Viverra aurita to the species in 1793;[6] the type locality was Algeria.

Subsequent synonyms include Fennecus arabicus by Anselme Gaëtan Desmarest in 1804;[7] Megalotis cerda by Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger in 1811[8] which was based on earlier descriptions by Gmelin, and another synonym by Desmarest (Fennecus brucei) in 1820; the type locality was Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Sudan.

[2] It was originally assigned to the genus Canis, but following molecular analysis it was moved to Vulpes despite having some distinct morphological and behavioral traits.

All eight species evolved to survive in desert environments, developing several traits such as sandy colored coats, large ears, pigmented eyes, and specialized kidneys.

[13] The fennec fox has sand-colored fur which reflects sunlight during the day and helps keep it warm at night.

Its long ears have longitudinal reddish stripes on the back and are so densely haired inside that the external auditory meatus is not visible.

The ear to body ratio is the greatest in the canid family and likely helps in dissipating heat and locating prey.

[17] The fennec fox is distributed throughout the Sahara, from Morocco and Mauritania to northern Sudan, through Egypt and its Sinai Peninsula.

Compared to these canids, the fennec fox seems to inhabit areas with more extreme climate and has been known to build burrows in grainier surfaces; this adaptation gives it an edge over competitors.

[1][22][17] Fennec foxes are primarily nocturnal, displaying heightened activity during the cooler nighttime hours.

[17] African horned owl species such as the Pharaoh eagle-owl prey on fennec fox pups.

[17] Captive fennec foxes are susceptible to canine distemper virus, displaying fever, mucopurulent ocular discharge, diarrhea, severe emaciation, seizures, generalized ataxia, severe dehydration, brain congestion, gastric ulcers and death.

[39] Parasites known to infect the fennec fox include roundworms such as Capillaria[40] and Angiostrongylus vasorum,[41] as well as the alveolate Toxoplasma gondii.

Other factors such as roadwork, seismic surveys, mining, oil fields, commercial expansion and the increased number of human communities in their range are cited as potential threats.

[44] The species is depicted in The Little Prince, a 1943 novella by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry which follows the story of a pilot who is forced to make an emergency plane landing in the remote Sahara Desert.

Similarly, in one case, two male individuals in the National Zoological Park spend the majority of their time pacing around their enclosures.