11/16/2010

Overview Receiving Calls Related to the Red Fox

• Classification • Winning the caller’s confidence Saving Lives with a Little Natural • Distribution • General Description • Scanning the landscape History • Feeding Habits – Diet and hunting skills … in this case, the Red Fox • Behavior • Placing the caller’s concerns in perspective • Life Cycle Valerie Ackerman – Birth and development • Mortality Virginia State Licensed Rehabilitator President, Wilderness Wildlife Rehabilitation

Classification Distribution

• Kingdom: Animalia (animals) • One of the largest ranges of any land animal. It • Phylum: Chordata (i.e. has a backbone) exists in: • Class: Mammalia (mammals) – Almost all of N. America north of Mexico

• Order: Carnivora (possesses true canine teeth) – Common throughout Europe and parts of North Photo: Rob Lee • Family: Canidae (dogs) Africa They are known to live in a wide range of – • Genus: Vulpes (the Latin word for “fox”) Most of Asia environments including forest, marshes, – • Species: vulpes In addition, it has been desert shrubland, prairies, and the arctic introduced to several Vulpes vulpes (red fox) tundra, not to mention suburban and urban Pacific Islands, and to the environments. continent of Australia in 1845

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Flicker.com

Thesilvercoyote.net Colors : Most common are reddish tone to General Description : Weight ranges from 8 to dark chestnut with a white chin, white upper 17 pounds depending on the region. In higher lip, white underside, black ears, black feet and Eyes : Gold to yellow and have distinctive latitudes such as Alaska and Canada they tend legs, and black nose. Other various color vertical/slit pupils, similar to those of to be larger. Very large red fox can weigh up to phases including silver fox and cross fox domestic cats 31 pounds. appear in litters of normal reds.

Tail : Red fox has a bushy tail that accounts for one- third of his body length. It is used for insulation while Feet : The red fox’s feet are canine though sleeping, a tool for communication, balance for somewhat small. Forepaws have five toes and Ear : Red foxes have triangular shaped ears that hind paws have four. Their agility is enhanced by movement, and has a white tip that distinguishes it move continually to improve reception from other canids. their semi-retractable claws.

Renard Kevin Fleming www.daf.gov.au Diet : Foxes are true omnivores. Their vegetarian side may Red fox employs 42 teeth within in elongated muzzle. In urban areas, red foxes will also scavenge on include grasses, grains, fungi, berries and fruit. On the Canines which hold prey, incisors for cutting and carnivorous side, diet may consist of insects (especially human refuse and will eat from pet food shearing meat, and molars for grinding bones and grasshoppers), rodents (mice, voles), rabbits, birds, eggs, bowls left outside. An opportunist, red fox diet vegetable matter. amphibians and small reptiles, fish, earthworms, carrion, and tends to vary directly to what’s available. more !

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www.hiren.info Steve Hinch

Red fox will also stalk prey such as rabbits and squirrels, Hunting : Red foxes are solitary hunters. Their acute sense of keeping hidden until close enough to catch them in a short hearing allows them to locate small mammals in thick grass, dash. However, its strong legs allow it to reach speeds up to Behavior : Although the red fox is primarily described as under growth or deep snow, within a few inches. They will 30 mph. crepuscular, it can also be active during the day. This behavior then launch themselves at a 45 degree angle into the air to can be observed while raising their kits and during the cold pounce on their prey . winter months.

Wildlifering.com

Furbearergallery.com Several dens are utilized within these territories. Dens may be Red fox generally claims its own territory, pairing up only in claimed from animals such as woodchucks. Larger dens are winter and foraging alone in the summer. Red fox may used for winter months and for rearing young. Smaller dens Jo and Jeff maintain territories as large as 4-5 square miles, but sightings are used for emergencies and to store excess food. Those Dens may be located in various areas, including fields, edge of of red fox sustaining a family on as little as an acre in urban dens are sometimes connected. In addition to an entrance, forests, deserts, under porches, or old barns, but always areas occur as well. their dens will always have an exit. located near a water source.

Coloradolifestyle.com Joel Sartore

Foxes mark their territory by recognition posts that are special Socially the fox communicates with body language and a smells that come from a scent gland located just above the variety of vocalizations. Noises may vary from a distinctive Max Waugh fox’s tail. Red fox cannot spray like a skunk and does not use three-yip “where are you” call, to a shriek that sounds like a this secretion as a defense. Red foxes primarily form monogamous pairs each winter. Both human scream. They also communicate with scent, marking parents will cooperate to raise a litter of kits each year. food and territorial boundary lines with urine and feces.

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David Element

Life cycle: Birth and development: Due to its broad Hoffman distribution, red fox breeding period varies between Generally, gestation period varies between 49 to 54 days. After December and March, depending on the location. Females the kits are born, the mother will stay with them to nurse and At birth, fox pups weigh 3-4 ounces (85 to 110 grams). Litters have an annual estrous period of between one and six days. to keep them warm until their eyes open ~ about 10 days. average four to nine young, five being the norm. They are Although a female may mate with several males, she will During this period, the male will bring food to her and leave it dark grayish/brown in color. Kits develop rapidly, tripling their eventually settle with only one. at the front of the den. weight in ten days.

Wildmarva.com By the fifth week, they start to explore the outside of the den. Kit’s bluish grey eyes open by the second week and the mother is able to At this time, they are a sandy grey-brown color that leave them for brief periods of time. By the third week, they are able to At six and seven weeks, they are much bolder and start move around and start fighting among themselves to establish an order of camouflages them well in their new surroundings. A hierarchy pouncing on leaves and sticks, and roughhousing with their dominance. By the fourth week, weaning begins and kits are fed partially amongst the kits has been established and they are now siblings. They frequently stalk and chase one another, and digested food, regurgitated by their parents. Mother still nurses her enjoying the most carefree times of their lives. some rivalry is still present. The play is needed to learn young, but starts to discourage them from suckling. hunting and fighting techniques needed later in life.

David White David White Forsythe

By the second month, kits are fully weaned, and by the third Summer arrives, their grey coat has turned reddish and their month, they are able to catch small prey such as insects. In addition to play, the kits accompany their parents on eyes, the golden color of adults. hunting trips to sharpen their skills.

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David White At six months, the red fox is fully grown and has most of its skills to Darrin Naish survive. In autumn, fox kits begin to disperse and find their own Mortality: territories, males leaving first. In some cases, one or more juvenile Natural predators of the red fox can include (depending on vixens will remain with their parents for a year. They are referred to the region) bears, domesticated dogs, eagles, hawks, owls, as “helper vixens”. They are non-breeding and will help to bring food wolves and coyotes. Foxes are subject to diseases such as to their younger siblings the following year. When foxes disperse, distemper, sarcoptic mange, and rabies, and more mundane Humans are responsible for most fox mortality: fur trapping, they will either take over another fox’s territory, or find one of their pest control programs, sport hunting, and destruction of threats such as starvation, exposure and old age. own. At this point the cycle begins again. habitat.

Receiving Calls Related to Red Fox

• Winning the caller’s confidence

Conrad Franz Automobiles pose a more serious threat to a fox scavenging for road kill. Mortality is highest in fox’s first year of life; pups are vulnerable to predation and juveniles may sometimes lack Foxes in the wild may live between three to five years of age. experience needed for survival. The average being two to Foxes in captivity may live to be ten to twelve. three kits surviving out of a litter of six.

Winning the caller’s confidence Scanning the Landscape Scanning the Landscape

• Upon receiving the call, confidently assure the caller you are a professional, and that you are positive you will be able to answer any questions they may have. • Ask the caller to give you clear description of the animal to make sure you are discussing red fox to begin with. • Determine if the fox is diseased or injured (if so, take necessary steps to help it). • If you have determined the fox is healthy, let the caller know you are not in the business of trapping, relocating, or destroying foxes; • By now, you should know if the phone call is you are there to help the fox as well. • First, ask if domestic animals are fed outside or if a neighbor • Allow the caller to talk about their concern without interruption. concerning a private home or a business. may be feeding pets outside, including horses and cattle. • Assure the caller again that you can help, but first, you must ask a • Then, you should ask the caller about the • Ask if there is anyone in the neighborhood feeding feral cats few questions that will help you to solve their problem. or if a spay/neuter/release program exists in the area. • Try to find humor within the situation, if possible; don’t press it . surroundings (landscape) and any activities • If this is the case, calmly explain what happens in these going on within the surroundings. circumstances.

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… place the caller concerns in Scanning the Landscape Scanning the Landscape perspective

• Now, ask what is beyond that. • Next, ask if there is an open field or abandoned lot, a strip of • Now, you should be able to put your puzzle together. • Is there any new construction in the area, such as housing, trees or forest, a barn or outbuildings. businesses or roads, etc? • Refer back to your knowledge of the fox’s natural history. • Also, ask if groundhog holes are present. • Have there been sightings of red fox predators such as • Compare the time of year (month or season) with the fox’s life • Last but not least, ask if there is a water source (ponds, coyotes, eagles or bears (depending on the region)? cycle. streams, runoffs, etc.). • Once you have gathered all of this information (and more if • Educate the caller as to what red fox may be doing at this possible) you are ready to … time.

Place the caller concerns in perspective • Talk about how beneficial foxes can be. • Lastly, explain how • Explain to the caller the foxes will be leaving soon devastating it would and give them an estimated time they may be there. be to destroy, trap or • Ask if they have children or grandchildren and try to relocate one or explain how educational it can be to watch these more of these animals animals grow within their life cycle, disperse to go off and possibly leave and have families on their own. others to survive on • Explain how humans are destroying their habitat and their own. it is harder for these animals to survive in the wil d. Photo: Mike Buxton

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