(Almost) live fox vocalization!
Just recorded this from my bedroom window a few minutes ago. This is one of the most familiar fox sounds, and definitely the most eerie. It’s not hard to understand how this sound is sometimes mistaken for someone being murdered!
This particular vocalization is a warning to let other foxes nearby know there is danger in the area.
(Source: theurbanfoxwatcher)
Can you spot both the fox and the crow in this photo?
Crows are the fox watchers best friend. They regularly alert me to the location of a fox, and as soon as I heard this one (in the tree on the left) calling I knew it had found one, (this time it was Black-Throat.)
So, how do you tell if a crow has found a fox? When crows see foxes they make a furious, constant cawing. They also tend to perch very low to the ground and constantly stare at the spot where the fox is. Next time I’ll see if I can get a video of it.
(Source: theurbanfoxwatcher)
Seems some of the foxes at the other cemetery have taken a turn for the worse since I lasted visited.
I believe this is Hop-Along, but he’s barely recognizable anymore. I’ve seen plenty of mangy foxes, but this is one of the worst cases I’ve seen. Poor guy has almost no fur left.
I’m gonna try and contact The Fox Project later and see if there’s anything they can do for him. I’m not sure if they’re legally able to trap foxes on public land, but hopefully they can do something!
(Source: theurbanfoxwatcher)
Mike and I found a strange animal today. I thought it was a coyote pup, but it has the face, ears and mangey (but white tip) tail of a fox. Legs are too long to be a fox though…super strange and sickly, out at 2pm. Or just a giant sickly fox with mange…or a monster. Mike is convinced it is teen wolf.
100% red fox with a nasty case of mange. Foxes are a lot leggier underneath all the fur.
It’s also a myth that foxes only come out at night. It’s quite common for them to be out and about during the day, and they even have special adaptations, (such as expanding and contracting pupils) in order to do so. Foxes are most active during daylight in spring and summer when nights are short and they have cubs to feed. However, foxes with mange are much more likely to be seen wondering about in the open like this as they become so desperate for food and warmth that they loose all fear.
Also finally managed to get a shot of the mother!
I left after the sun had gone down and spotted her along with two other adults at their regular feeding station, (the neighbors there feed them every evening.) The others ran off but the vixen was too busy eating too notice. I didn’t immediately recognize any of them, which suggests Big Dog’s family have been moved out, although I didn’t get a good enough look at any of them to say for sure. They certainly are an elusive lot, though!
At least the mother is looking very healthy. She’s still got a lovely coat on her, unlike most foxes around here have a more raggedy summer coat. Really shows the difference good, regular food makes! Although these foxes are still excellent hunters, as I often find the fresh remains of pigeons they’ve killed.
(Source: theurbanfoxwatcher)
Sorry for the lack of cub updates. between my poor health and the appalling weather I haven’t been able to get down to the cemetery much these last few weeks, and when i do go the cubs are always either sleeping or playing in the brambles. However, I managed to film them here by standing on one of the graves.
It’s amazing how much they’ve changed! They’ve doubled in size and have finally got their red coats. They’re also much more cautious and aware of danger now. When one of them did spot me it bolted into deep cover.
Tumblr wouldn’t post the video properly so had to upload from YouTube.
(Source: theurbanfoxwatcher)
Karu camera, May 2013
Active camera list is here.
A couple of great live cams located in Estonia for all you wildlife lovers. Seems foxes and raccoon dogs (a very primitive type of fox), are regular visitors on the forest cam!
(via canidcompendium)
More on those RSPB Saltholme foxes!
We watched the vixen sunning herself at this earth entrance yesterday - utterly unconcerned.
Previous sightings.
Fantastic footage! Love that really dark cub.
Anonymous asked: How do you think the fox population would differ if wolves were introduced back into the UK? (there are plans for 1 pack being in Scotland) would it affect the foxes at all?
Right now foxes are the apex predator in the UK, but if a new apex predator were to return it would mean that foxes would not be able to exist at such high densities.
I did a post on a similar topic here: http://theurbanfoxwatcher.tumblr.com/tagged/lynx
Although that’s about the re-introduction of lynx, the principle is the same. Where wolves and foxes share the same area wolves will hunt and kill foxes to reduce competition, so it would have a noticeable impact on rural populations. Urban populations, however, would probably remain unaffected, as would those in habitat unsuitable for wolves, (intensive farmland, for example.)
Anonymous asked: Where would you say is the best area for fox watching in the UK?
Foxes are present over most of the UK, so I wouldn’t really say there’s one “best” place.
For urban foxes the south-east is generally where the population is at it’s highest, making them easier to find. London in particular has a very large fox population, although I believe Edinburgh is also a very good city for fox watching.
Elsewhere foxes preferred habitat is open meadows and farmland, (they’re not so keen on dense woodland), so anywhere with this kind of habitat will be a great place to find foxes. Moorland is also a popular fox habitat but pressure from hunting to protect sheep and gamebirds in these regions means foxes are usually a lot more wary and secretive.
Anonymous asked: Hello, I just have a semi-ignorant question that I've been meaning to ask for awhile. How are you able to distinguish between foxes? Some of them I can tell differences, when they have distinct features. But you're able to tell cubs apart, when they often look so similar. You even recognize foxes that are new to you and you've only caught glimpses of! I'm completely amazed at how aware you are of them. Did it just come with time and familiarity?
Like us, every fox looks different! Their markings, color, facial structure, size, scars and such all help to create each animal’s unique look. Of cause, some are much more distinctive then others, but even little things like the position of the eyes or shape of the ears can be enough once you learn to recognize said features!
Of cause, when the fox is at a distance it’s a lot harder to ID them, and even I make mistakes sometimes, but I can usually work it out when looking back through photos. It definitely takes time and skill to learn to spot the differences, though, but the more foxes I meet the easier it becomes.
I actually find cubs a lot easier to tell apart then adults! Siblings all tend to develop at different rates so the differences are a lot more obvious.
The cemetery was overrun with wildlife today!
While I was watching the deer a rabbit bounded into view a couple of meters from them. Then a few seconds later a fox pocked it’s head out of the grass nearby to watch the rabbit! Wish I could of got a shot of them all together.
Didn’t see any cubs but plenty of other animals. Including an adult fox, of cause!
This time in a much bigger cemetery then the ones I usually go to.
I’ll make sure to take pictures as I search so i can do a little guide to locating fox earths. Hopefully if I get lucky I might even get some shots of more cubs.
thepageofswords asked: Hey there, I have a question about some pups I saw today. I saw 4-5 pups near the side of the road, I stopped to look for their mother but didn't see her, alive or dead. I came back through about two hours later, and they were still in the same spot. Do you think these guys are in trouble? The area is part of a large wooded park if that makes any difference.
Unless the cubs are clearly starving then they’re fine.
The mother will often leave the cubs alone for much the day and only return to them for brief periods (usually after dark) so as not to draw attention to the den. In all my time fox watching I’ve only ever seen a vixen visit her cubs twice. It’s perfectly normal for them to be left alone for long periods of time and it’s unlikely you’ll actually see the vixen visit them unless you watch them 24/7, (a visit may last less then a minute to just drop off food. The older they get the less time the vixen spends with them.)
