Foxes: Behavior, Characteristics & Cultural Significance

Fox

Introduction to Fox

Fox, a small, flesh-eating animal that belongs to the dog family. The female is called a vixen; the young are cubs, kits, or pups. The fox is a clever, alert animal that has played a part in countless fairy tales, stories, and proverbs. Its ability to offer pursuers a challenging chase has given rise to the sport of fox hunting. It is also hunted and trapped commercially for its valuable pelt, and is raised on fur farms. In many areas the fox sometimes destroys poultry; on the other hand, the fox is often useful, for it also helps keep in check rodents and other pests.

Foxes have lean bodies covered with long, thick fur. They range in length from less than two feet (60 cm) to more than three feet (90 cm), including the tail. The fox's bushy tail is from half to two-thirds as long as its head and body combined. The fox has a sharply pointed muzzle. Most species have large, erect, triangular ears. Foxes vary in color not only according to species, but also from individual to individual within the species. They may be reddish, yellow, light or dark brown, various shades of gray, white, or black.

A fox's eyes are adapted for seeing in the dark. Its pupils are elliptical in strong light, like those of a cat, rather than round like those of other members of the dog family. Foxes have keen senses of sight, smell, and hearing. Most foxes have a disagreeable odor, produced by scent glands at the base of the tail.

Foxes of various kinds are found throughout North America, Europe, and Asia, including the Arctic regions. They are also found in many parts of Africa. Until foxes were imported into Australia to keep down the rabbit population, they were unknown there.

Facts in brief about foxesNames: Male, dog; female, vixen; young, pup or cub.Gestation period: 49 to 79 days, depending on species.Length of life: Up to 14 years.Where found: Throughout the world except Antarctica, Southeast Asia, and some islands.Scientific classification: Foxes belong to the family Canidae. The bat-eared fox is Otocyon megalotis. The gray fox is Urocyon cinereoargenteus. The kit fox is Vulpes velox. The red fox is Vulpes fulva. The maned wolf is Chrysocyon brachyurus. The raccoon dog is Nyctereutes procyonoides.

Habits

Foxes are adapted to a wide range of climates and habitats, from Arctic to equatorial regions, seacoasts to mountains, and open woodlands to deserts. They will eat almost any small animal they can catch, including birds, fish, and insects, and will also eat carrion (dead flesh) left by other predators, birds' eggs, and fruit, grain, and other forms of vegetable matter. Most foxes hunt and forage at night and sleep during the day. Some foxes store food when it is plentiful for use when it is scarce.

Foxes dig burrows or enlarge the burrows of such other animals as badgers, wood-chucks, and prairie dogs. Some adult foxes sleep in their burrows, but adults of other species rest in rock crevices, hollow logs, or underbrush and use the burrows only as dens for their young. In the Arctic, foxes often dig holes in deep snow for shelter during blizzards.

Foxes of some species mate for life. Female foxes give birth once a year. Litter size generally ranges from 2 to 7. Both parents help in rearing the young. After the young are about five months old, they are able to fend for themselves. The parents then usually hunt alone until the next breeding season. With few exceptions, foxes do not hunt or travel in large packs.

How Do Foxes Fit In?

Foxes look like small, slim dogs. They have bushy tails, large ears, and pointed snouts. The fox doesn’t need a wolf’s large, heavy jaw. Its prey is much smaller than a wolf’s prey.

Foxes hunt alone and at night. They have keen hearing and an excellent sense of smell. A fox can locate a mouse to eat just by listening to its squeaks in the grass.

Foxes live and hunt in a territory that they mark with their scent. They defend it against intruders. Like coyotes, foxes eat whatever they can catch—mice, ground squirrels, rabbits, birds, frogs, lizards, and insects. Foxes also seem to like fruit, even when other food is available.

Just How Swift Are Swift Foxes?

Swift foxes are some of the fastest wild dogs in North America. They can run more than 25 miles (40 kilometers) an hour over short distances. Swift foxes are also known as kit foxes because of their small size. They are usually no more than 20 inches (51 centimeters) long and weigh from 4 to 6 pounds (1.8 to 2.7 kilograms).

With great bursts of speed, swift foxes can chase down almost any mouse, ground squirrel, cricket, or other small prey. Swift foxes also use their incredible quickness to zigzag their way to safety when chased by coyotes, red foxes, or other predators.

Kinds of Foxes

The Red (or Common) Fox

is one of the most numerous foxes. It is the one usually hunted in North America and Europe, where it is widely distributed. It is also found in Asia and North Africa. The New World species of red fox differs only slightly from the Old World species. The red fox is usually rusty red or golden red above, and light gray to white below. The backs of its ears and fronts of its legs are usually black, and the tail is always white at the tip. Red foxes vary in length from 35 to 42 inches (89 to 107 cm), including a 10- to 16-inch (25- to 40-cm) tail.

Although the reddish color is most common, there are several color variations. These color variations are called color phases. Color phases occurring in red foxes in North America are the cross phase and the silver phase. Foxes of the cross phase are yellowish or reddish brown with a black band across the shoulders and a black line down the back, which form a cross. Foxes of the silver phase are silver to solid black, depending on the number of white-tipped hairs in the coat. Foxes with a platinum-colored coat are bred on fox farms from certain foxes of the silver phase.

The red fox has sharp teeth typical of carnivores.Which Foxes Are Most Like Cats?

Red foxes are a lot like cats in the way they hunt. A red fox may sneak up on its prey, freeze, and then leap and pounce. Its prey is often a mouse.

Like cats, red foxes have whiskers that help them feel their way in the dark and sense what is around them. Red foxes can see in the dark, too, so they are good night hunters. The pupils of their eyes are vertical slits, just like a cat’s eyes. The pupils open very wide to gather light. A fox’s eyes also have special layers that help collect light.

The Kit Fox

is a small relative of the red fox. It is found in the western plains and deserts of the United States, in southwestern Canada, and in northwestern Mexico. The kit fox is grayish above, yellowish on the sides and chest, and white below. Its tail is black-tipped. The plains kit fox, or swift fox, is 24 to 35 inches (61 to 89 cm) in length, including the tail. The desert kit fox is slightly smaller. The desert kit fox has especially large ears that radiate body heat and thus help cool the animal.

The Gray Fox

is found from southeastern Canada through the eastern half of the United States, and from northern Oregon south to Venezuela. It is dark gray above and reddish brown and white below, and has a black-tipped tail. Unlike other foxes, it has comparatively small, round ears. It is 31 to 43 inches (79 to 109 cm) long, including the tail. The gray fox is easier to trap than the red fox, but its fur is shorter and less valuable. It is the only fox that can climb trees.

Which Fox Climbs Trees?

If something is chasing a gray fox, the fox may run for a hole. Or it may climb a tree. The gray fox grasps the tree trunk with its front paws and pushes up with its hind feet. It may even leap from branch to branch.

Gray foxes don’t just climb trees. They may even make their dens in tree hollows. These hollows can be as high as 30 feet (9 meters) off the ground.

Gray foxes have a very large habitat. It extends from the border between the United States and Canada in North America all the way to Venezuela and Colombia in South America. Gray foxes hunt in woodlands and on open plains. They also live near the edges of cities and on farmlands.

Gray foxes eat insects, birds, and small mammals, such as rabbits and mice. Gray foxes also eat plant foods, such as fruits and grains.

The Arctic Fox

is found in both the Eastern and the Western Hemisphere north of 55° North latitude. Depending on their color, Arctic foxes belong to either of two subgroups, called the white phase and the blue phase. Foxes of the white phase are solid white in winter and dull brown in summer. Foxes of the blue phase are pale blue-gray in winter and dark blue-gray in summer. Arctic foxes range in length from 28 to 43 inches (71 to 109 cm), including the tail. Arctic foxes have the largest litter size of any fox—normally 6 to 12 young, sometimes as many as 20. Arctic foxes are among the few foxes that sometimes travel in large groups. Highly valued for their fur, they are often raised on ranches.

The Fennec Fox

or Fennec, inhabits the deserts of Arabia and northern Africa. It is yellowish above and white below, with a black tail tip. The fennec fox is the smallest fox; it is 21 to 28 inches (53 to 71 cm) in length, including the tail. The fennec fox has the largest ears, in relation to body size, of any fox; they may be more than six inches (15 cm) in length.

Which Foxes Are the Smallest?

The smallest of all foxes are fennecs. A fennec weighs only 2 to 3 pounds (0.9 kilogram to 1.4 kilograms). Fennecs live in the deserts of Saudi Arabia and northern Africa.

A fennec is well suited to the hot climate in which it lives. Body heat escapes easily through the fennec’s huge ears. Hairs on the pads of its feet allow it to run quickly over loose or hot sand. To get moisture in its diet, a fennec eats the roots of desert plants that it digs up.

Fennecs can use their enormous ears to pick up sounds made by their prey. They usually hunt small animals, such as gerbils, lizards, and insects. But sometimes they kill rabbits bigger than themselves.

The Bat-eared Fox

is another fox with very large ears; it is found in the steppes of eastern and southern Africa. It is generally yellowish brown above and pale below, with black lower legs and feet and a black muzzle and tail tip. Bat-eared foxes range in length from 27 to 36 inches (69 to 91 cm).

How Do Bat-Eared Foxes Keep Cool?

Bat-eared foxes are little animals with very big ears. They live in dry areas of eastern and southern Africa. Like other animals that live in hot regions, the bat-eared fox needs to keep itself cool. This fox’s ears allow heat from its body to pass into the air.

How big are the ears of this little fox? The fox itself is only 18 to 23 inches (46 to 58 centimeters) high at the shoulder. But its ears are up to 5 inches (13 centimeters) long.

Bat-eared foxes eat mainly insects, especially termites. They also like fruits, mice, and rats. This fox has more teeth than any other wild dog. With 46 to 50 teeth, the bat-eared fox is able to chew through the hard parts of an insect’s body.

Other Foxes

include a number of plains and desert foxes closely related to the red fox. They are medium to small in size, and are usually a pale yellowish brown. These foxes include the corsac of central Asia; the sand fox of Arabia and northern Africa; the pale fox, of the region from Senegal to Somalia; and the Cape fox, or cama, of southwestern Africa.

There are several South American mammals popularly called foxes, but zoologists believe they show a closer likeness to wild dogs.

Foxes belong to the family Canidae. The American red fox is Vulpes fulva; the Old World red fox, V. vulpes. Some biologists classify both types of kit foxes as V. velox; others use this classification only for the plains kit fox, and classify the desert kit fox as V. macrotis. The gray fox is Urocyon cinereoargenteus. The Arctic fox is Alopex lagopus. The fennec fox is Fennecus zerda. The bat-eared fox is Otocyon megalotis. The Asian and African desert and plains foxes belong to the genus Vulpes. Some biologists classify all South American foxes in the genus Dusicyon; others use several genera.