Eco-Postcards: Red Fox [Vulpes vulpes]
Pictured is the red fox (Vulpes vulpes). While this coloration is the most widely recognized and most popularized, the red fox can range from beige, to gray, to an intense red. A silver variation of the red fox makes up 10% to 25% of all red foxes. They weight approximately 6.5 to an astounding 24 pounds, their height range is 18 to 34 inches, and their length range is 12 to 22 inches. In the wild, their average lifespan is 2 to 4 years, and their habitat very diverse, as they live in forests, mountains, deserts, grasslands, and farmland.4 Their habitat range in the United States is east of the Rocky Mountains, except the southern United States by Texas.[1]
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Red foxes are solitary, nocturnal creatures, usually only meeting to mate, which their mating season is from January through March. A fox’s gestation period is rough 52 days, and their litter sizes range from 3 to 10, but the normal is 4 to 6 kits.[3][6] For domesticated foxes, their owners often describe foxes getting what are called “October Crazies” in their first year, in which foxes get intensely territorial, hyperactive, and fearful. This aligns with the time when foxes are old enough to be kicked out of their den and find their own territories outside of the den and their mother’s territory.[2] The kits will start with regurgitated food from their mother until they are old enough to eat prey that she brings back. They will also receive live food once they are old enough to kill them, as it allows them to learn skills that they need to survive outside the den.[3] The den is usually not of their own creation, they find a den that has already been carved out, such as a rabbit den, and they may have more than one den in order to move in case of danger.
Foxes are omnivores and must have meat in their diet, which most of their meat consists of local rodents, like rabbits and squirrels. They will also eat bugs, such as crickets, and their vegetation diet consists of fruits, berries, and edible grasses.[3][1] |
Red foxes are easily identifiable from their black tail and russet colored body, excluding the more uncommon coat colorings. Their tail is used for communication with other foxes, for warmth as it is covered in dense fur, and for balance as well. When foxes hunt, they can hear low-frequency sounds which allows them to hear prey that is underground, and they will often jump and do a “nosedive” into the earth where they sense their prey, paws first digging in. This is to surprise the prey in hopes the fox is able to catch it before it flees.[1]
Foxes are also known for the many different types of noises that they can make. Their sounds can range from growls, to barks, to yips, to sounds that sound eerily similar to human screams. In total, foxes have approximately 28 different types of sounds they can make. Kits have a more limited range, while adults have the full range.[5] |
Foxes are a least concerned species, as they are not endangered at all.[4] They are occasionally hunted for sport, especially in the United Kingdom, but are usually killed in the United States on accident, as pest control, or suspected rabies. Foxes are in a higher trophic level in their respective ecosystem, as they do not have many natural predators, excluding humans. Due to this they are able to hunt unchecked, alongside coyotes and wolves, and put pressure on their prey, often overhunting. Wild ducks are a popular prey, and their numbers now have to be monitored due to the red fox’s hunting habits.[1] They can also kill pets, but this is more uncommon, as they usually view similar sized animals, such as larger domestic cats and dogs, as competition instead of prey.6 If they live in an urban environment, they may also have the role of scavengers, digging through human’s trash if they are desperate enough.[1]
Since their diet consists of fruits and berries, they also act as seed dispersers through their scat.[1] |
Works Cited*
[1] The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2020, May 28). Red fox. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.britannica.com/animal/red-fox-mammal
[2] Flint Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation. (2012). I Have a Fox in My Yard/Neighborhood. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.flintcreekwildlife.org/fact_sheets/I_Have_a_Fox_in_My_Yard_-_Neighborhood.pdf
[3] New Hampshire PBS. (2020). Red Fox - Vulpes vulpes. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/redfox.htm
[4] Sartore, J. (2018, September 21). Red Fox. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/r/red-fox/
[5] Varela, C. (2019, January 23). Communal living and screams in the night: The secret lives of foxes. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.lancswt.org.uk/blog/charlotte-varela/secret-lives-foxes
[6] Westerville Division of Police. (2015, May 1). Foxes in Westerville - Information from Animal Control (Westerville Division of Police). Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://nextdoor.com/agency-post/oh/westerville/westerville-division-of-police/foxes-in-westerville-information-from-animal-control-11204400/
*For image sources, click the respective image.
[1] The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2020, May 28). Red fox. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.britannica.com/animal/red-fox-mammal
[2] Flint Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation. (2012). I Have a Fox in My Yard/Neighborhood. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.flintcreekwildlife.org/fact_sheets/I_Have_a_Fox_in_My_Yard_-_Neighborhood.pdf
[3] New Hampshire PBS. (2020). Red Fox - Vulpes vulpes. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/redfox.htm
[4] Sartore, J. (2018, September 21). Red Fox. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/r/red-fox/
[5] Varela, C. (2019, January 23). Communal living and screams in the night: The secret lives of foxes. Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://www.lancswt.org.uk/blog/charlotte-varela/secret-lives-foxes
[6] Westerville Division of Police. (2015, May 1). Foxes in Westerville - Information from Animal Control (Westerville Division of Police). Retrieved September 21, 2020, from https://nextdoor.com/agency-post/oh/westerville/westerville-division-of-police/foxes-in-westerville-information-from-animal-control-11204400/
*For image sources, click the respective image.