The Red Fox

These foxes are the most common type of fox in the world and are the type that we find in urban areas and who come into our gardens in the UK. It used to be that grey wolves were the most common canines across the globe, however it has now been officially documented that the red fox has overtaken them.

Vulpes Vulpes (to give the red fox it’s latin name) are actually part of the dog family, albeit the smallest members and can grow up to around 5kgs when fully grown. Their life expectancy is quite wide ranging and can differ depending on whether their habitat is in the city or in the countryside. Many cubs don’t make it past 2 years old, although foxes held in captivity have been known to live for 15 years.

The mating season for foxes normally occurs in December and January and their mating rituals often involves blood curdling screaming as a form of communication. Red fox cubs (or kits) are born into a fox ‘earth’ (a den located in a secluded place) and usually only leave after a few weeks. The red fox cubs become independent at around 3 or 4 months and can start to produce offspring of their own after about 1 year.

The Red Fox is able to live in all sorts of adverse conditions and is very adaptable to it’s environment. Hence it’s success in surviving in urban areas, particularly in the cities of London and Bristol. They have been known to feed on lots of different prey which has helped their survival. Mice, voles and rats are common prey but they also earthworms as well as food scraps left out in gardens.

The red fox can often divide opinion in urban areas, with some people enjoying them and encourage the fox into their gardens, whilst others see them as a pest and seek to purchase various fox repellent products to keep the foxes away. In the countryside too, farmers often have a love-hate relationship with the red fox. On the one hand the fox is seen as a danger to chickens and lambs, on the other they keep rabbits and rodents off of farmland. Some common fox deterrent methods in the country are snares, fox traps and electric fences.

The red fox has undergone some harsh treatment throughout the ages through fox hunting, the fox fur trade and a recent backlash caused by a few high profile fox attacks on humans. The red fox is however a very durable creature and far from declining, their numbers seem to be steadily increasing, meaning that love them or hate them, the red fox is here to stay.

The Bengal Fox

In India, Bangladesh and Nepal, the most common type of fox is the Bengal Fox. When compared with the common red fox, it is much slighter in appearance and has a more pointed nose along with a distinct black tip on it’s tail. Commonly weighing between 2-4kgs and with a life expectancy of around 11 years, the Bengal Fox enjoys hunting alone at either end of the day, out of the intense heat of it’s surroundings.

Like the red fox, the Bengal fox likes to dig a complicated network of tunnels to use as a hiding place and to give birth to and bring up their young. The litter varies between 3-6 cubs and the diet of the Bengal Fox is quite varied, ranging from rodents to insects to fruit.

Interestingly, studies have shown that the Bengal fox does not mark it’s territory with urine or faeces. This is unusual because defecation to claim an area is a very defining characteristic of the red fox, as many frustrated gardeners will testify to in urban areas!

Unfortunately the Bengal Fox is not thriving like it’s red counterparts. The threat of man is increasingly cutting the numbers of Bengal foxes due to both habitat destruction and hunting. The Bengal fox’s preferred areas to inhabit are open pieces of grassy land and scrub. Due to the increase of converting land for use in agriculture and a lack of land protection in the Indian subcontinent, the habitats of the Bengal fox are getting smaller and smaller, obviously causing a decrease in it’s numbers.

The foxes are also hunted for sports, for their fur in addition to some Indian tribes using fox teeth and tails in some medicines, believing them to have healing qualities. It is also not unknown for some people to catch the Bengal fox in order to eat it’s meat. Despite the Indian government issuing legislation in 1991 that forbids the hunting of Bengal foxes, because of the reasons given above, the legislation has had a limited impact and has failed to stop the decline in numbers.

Alas it appears that the Bengal fox is a member of the fox family that is not going to survive for too many more generations, as in addition to a lack of habitat and hunting, the fox also faces a threat from wolves, dogs and disease (namely rabies and canine distemper). One would hope the vulpes bengalensis will make a bit of a comeback, but at the moment it unfortunately looks like a decline that will not be reversed.

Blanford’s Fox

Also known as the Afghan Fox, Blanford’s Foxes are mainly found in the middle east. In actual fact, not too much is know about Blanford’s fox, but it tends to live in areas with little or no vegetation, having a light coloured coat that helps it blend into it’s arid and rocky surroundings.

There was a time when the Blanford’s Fox was considered seriously in danger of extinction, however it has since been downgraded on the ICUN Red List to be of relatively low risk of extinction.

The Latin name for the Blanford’s fox is Vulpes Cana and it gets it’s name from the English naturalist William Thomas Blanford, who spent a lot of time in the middle east and the fox was named in honour of him upon it’s discovery in 1877.

Blanford’s foxes have a cream coloured fur with black flecks, a black tail tip and black fur running alongside the nose. It also has very large pointed ears which would suggest it has excellent hearing. The foxes have a long bushy tail which is a similar length to their body and probably helps the Blanford’s fox to balance when it is negotiating large rocks and steep slopes in it’s mountainous habitat. The Blandford’s Fox has often been compared to more of a wild cat in appearance rather than to it’s canine origins.

The foxes stick to one partner throughout their lives but they hunt individually. As with the Red Fox, the mating season is normally around January, but pup litters are smaller at around 1-3 pups. The pups are fed on milk in their hidden dens until about the age of 2 months. After around 4 months, the Blanford’s fox will start to hunt alone.

Although humans are less of a threat to Blanford foxes, than to other types of foxes, they can be preyed upon by red foxes, wild cats and golden eagles. Because of the rough terrain they inhabit, the Blanford’s fox is usually unable to tunnel underground, instead resorting to gaps in rocks and naturally occurring caves, thus making them more vulnerable to predators.

The Cape Fox

Also known as the Silver Fox or the Silver Jackal, the Cape Fox is mainly found in the southern part of Africa. Quite a small fox, with a weight of between 3-5kgs, the Cape Fox usually has silver coloured fur on it’s back (hence it’s other name) blending into a yellowy underbelly, big ears and a black tip on the end of it’s tail.

The areas the Cape Fox likes to inhabit are grasslands, arid terrain, scrubland and savanahs. The foxes like to burrow and create their own underground tunnel network, though they are also commonly known to take over the dens of other burrowing animals, provided they have been abandoned first. Litter size can range from anywhere between 1-6 cubs and the cubs are brought up in these underground lairs until they are old enough to hunt for themselves, which usually occurs at around 5 months. The young Cape Foxes can mate as early as 9 months (a little earlier than the Red Fox) and can expect to live between 6-10 years

Living in the plains of southern Africa, the Cape Fox does have a wide variety of predators to watch out for, including eagles, hyenas and lions as well as being susceptible to rabies. Humans are also a threat in terms of hunting, poisoning and being hit by cars. Currently, however, the Cape Fox is not losing it’s habitat and the Cape Fox population is considered to be quite healthy.

Indeed, some southern African farmers like the Cape Fox because of their propensity for catching rodents. But they are considered to be omnivores, eating both meat and plant life and are quite likely to eat anything they can in true opportunist style.

Unfortunately, Cape Foxes (or Vulpes Chama) are often involved in cases of mistaken identity with jackals (explaining their alias of ‘Silver Jackals’) and are often killed by farmers who are intending to stop jackals attacking their livestock. There is also a debate amongst farmers as to whether the Cape Fox actively hunts and kills farmstock, or whether they simply feats on carcasses that have been caught and left by other animals. This argument about the Cape Fox seems to be ongoing and unresolved.

The specific countries where the Cape Fox inhabits are Namibia, South Africa, Botswana Zimbabwe and Lesotho. Because the Cape Fox is so adaptable and not fussy in it’s diet, it is able to thrive in many different areas of these southern African countries.

The Corsac Fox

The Vulpes Corsac, or the Corsac Fox, are common to countries such as south eastern Russia, Mongolia and Afghanistan and can thrive in all sorts of conditions, including deserts. They are wanderers, not being particularly tied to one place and have been known to cover fairly vast distances.

Much more meat eating than other foxes, the Corsac Fox can survive for long periods without water but they will eat insects and plants if needs be. In order to blend in with it’s surroundings, the Corsac Fox has a very distinctive summer and winter coat. The summer coat tends to be a yellowy-grey fur, while in winter it becomes sandier and redder in colour and smoother and silkier to the touch. Their weight can vary between 1.5 – 3.5 kgs and it is guesstimated that their life expectancy is around 9 years.

The Corsac Fox likes to avoid snow (which is frequent in it’s habitats) and will often hide in shallow burrows they have dug themselves or in burrows created by other animals. They are also prepared to migrate to warmer climates in extreme conditions in search of food and reports suggest they like to follow herds of other migrating animals who will trample down the snow and create a pathway. It has been noted in history that particularly harsh winters can have a huge impact on the Corsac’s numbers, though the numbers of the fox have traditionally soon jumped back up again within a couple of generations.

Strong sense of smell and hearing, as well as good strong claws are characteristics of the Corsac Fox. The strong claws make it good at climbing big rocks and trees, however the Corsac is relatively slow for a fox, making it susceptible to being caught by bigger predators such as birds of prey.

Due to their bushy and silky fur, the Corsac Fox is also hunted by humans and over the years, the Corsac Fox pelts have come in and out of fashion, meaning that their numbers have gone up and down. At the moment however, Corsac fox fur is not particularly fashionable and, although not too much data is know about the Corsac fox population, they are not considered to be endangered.

Importantly, it is worth mentioning that Blanford’s foxes are sometimes know as Corsacs, however the two varieties of foxes are different and should not be confused.

The Kit Fox

Vulpes macrotis or the Kit Fox is a small fox that can be found in North America and Mexico and can be recognised by it’s big ears and grey and rust coloured fur. Usually the male is slightly bigger than the female. The Kit Fox is actually the smallest type of fox in north America and can be compared to roughly the size of a pet cat. In the winter, the Kit Fox will be a greyish colour across their backs, which turns to a reddish tan during the summer. The Kit Fox also has a big bushy tail with a black tip at the end. The big ears help them to dissipate heat which is helpful in the hot American deserts.

The Kit Foxes are quite adaptable and will make their homes anywhere they feel comfortable. These can very from the traditional underground den to structures created by man, such as drains, pipe networks and in holes underneath buildings.

Mating season for the Kit Fox is between December-March and a typical litter will result in 3-5 cubs. Special dens are created for the cubs to be raised and often the Kit Fox will created multiple dens with multiple rooms. The young will tend to leave the family after around 5months, although some young females have been known to stay longer. The Kit Fox will normally grow to around 2.5kgs and life expectancy is around 7 years.

In terms of diet, the Kit Fox is mainly carnivorous, preying upon squirrels, small birds, rodents and rats. They will also eat vegetation and insects if the presence of meat is scarce and will mainly hunt at night.

The biggest threats to the Kit Fox are the bigger Red Foxes and coyotes. Man has also had an impact on the Kit Fox population in terms of traffic, hunting and poisoning and much of the fox’s traditional habitats have been destroyed. Fields converted into homes for grazing animals, means that much of the Kit Fox’s natural prey has been destroyed. Because of the decline in numbers, the Kit Fox has actually been put on the endangered list in California.

The Pale Fox

Not much is known about the Pale Fox, which can be found in the region between the Sahara Desert and the savannas of Sudan in Africa. The Pale Fox also goes by the name of the Pallid Fox or the African Sand Fox.

Because of the sandy and desert terrain that the Pale Fox inhabits, the high heat causes them to spend most of the day underground out of the direct sunlight. The Pale Fox has been known to dig tunnels and dens as far as 2m down and they rest in these before coming out at sunset to hunt for prey.

The Pale Fox is an omnivorous animal and will eat anything from plants and vegetation to insects and small rodents. Water is often a rare commodity in the African Sahel and the Pale Fox has survived such dry conditions because of it’s ability to take the water it needs from it’s food. This means that the Pale Fox does not have to worry about finding a watering hole to survive.

The Latin name of the Pale Fox is the Vulpes Pallida and there are actually 5 subspecies of this type of fox. Characterised by a thin nose and large ears, the Pale Fox is a sandy-brown colour with a black-tipped bushy tail. They usually weigh around 2-3kgs and females give birth to litters of 3-5 cubs. Preliminary studies have shown that Pale Foxes are actually social and communal in their behaviour, often sharing tunnels and burrows with other foxes.

It is estimated that the Pale Fox does not live longer than 10 years, but as with much of the information regarding this type of fox, further studies need to be conducted as the current evidence is inconclusive. It is not even known what or if the Pale Fox has any predators, however they are not considered to be an endangered species.

Rueppell’s Fox

Named after the German naturist Eduard Rueppell (who also had many other species take his name), Rueppell’s Fox can be found across North Africa and the Middle East. Another fox that inhabits desert areas, Rueppell’s Fox has very large ears that help to keep it cool in very high temperatures. With a white tuft of fur at the end of it’s tail and a red sandy tinge to it’s fur, Rueppell’s Foxes have hairy pads on the bottom of their feet. This helps them to walk on desert sand that reaches excruciating temperatures.

The scent glands of Rueppell’s Fox are very important to it’s way of life and interaction with other foxes and predators. Territories are marked, greetings are made and predators are sprayed all with their scent glands. The glands are important to the female when raising young as she will mark the den with her scent.

Very nocturnal, Rueppell’s foxes are quick to vacate their dens are either find or create a new one if they are disturbed. A typical Rueppell’s Fox litter will contain 2-3 cubs and after mating season, Rueppell’s Foxes break from their monogamous way of life and travel in fairly large groups. The fox pups will branch out on their own after around 4 months and by 12 months will be ready to mate, which usually occurs in winter.

As with so many foxes, Rueppell’s Foxes are opportunistic and adaptable eating mainly insects, but also a wide variety of food from eggs, small mammals and vegetation. They normally hunt alone will also hunt for chickens and other livestock if presented with the chance. Their main predators are eagle owls and steppe eagles and a wild Rueppell’s Fox can expect to live for around 7 years.

Gray Fox

Gray foxes are a grizzled gray color, having cream-colored fur tipped with black. The fur on their underside is light tan, often tipped with reddish fur. They have a line of black fur extending down the top of their tails to the tip. The cheeks and throat are white, with this band of light fur extending the length of the belly to the tail. The backs of the ears and the sides of their neck are a rusty orange. Gray foxes’ legs and feet can be rusty orange or grizzled gray.

Gray foxes are slightly smaller in size than red foxes, typically weighing between 7 and 14 pounds.

The Tibetan Sand Fox

The Tibetan Sand Fox lives at high altitudes in and around the Tibetan Plateau and thrives in mountainous grasslands and deserts. Some of the countries where the Sand Fox is found is Bhutan, Nepal and China.

The Tibetan Sand Fox is distinguishable because of it’s large, box-shaped head. Coupled with it’s small ears, it has an almost comical and out of proportion appearance. The foxes usually have white tips at the ends of their tails with a pale white underbelly and an reddish-grey coloured fur and weigh approximately 4-5kgs.

When they find a mate, they are monogamous and the male and females share hunting and raising the cubs between them. The Tibetan Sand Foxes are also know to be relatively relaxed about living in close quarters to other fox families, making them less territorial than other fox varieties. A typical litter of Tibetan Sand Foxes is between 2-4 cubs and they are brought up in a den, which may have several entrances and be secluded by a boulder or a crevice. The Tibetan Sand Fox cubs will be ready to fend for themselves aged 8-10 months and will go off to hunt and make families of their own.

Humans and disease are the main threats to the Tibetan Fox. Humans hunting the foxes are not really a problem because the Tibetan Fox’s fur is too rough and coarse to be of any great value. Dogs quite commonly attack the foxes and also some governments in the region have taken to culling great numbers of pikas, which has arguably impacted on them. In certain areas of China, the Tibetan Sand Fox is heavily affected by different forms of tapeworm which can cause disease such as alveola hydatid disease and echinococcus.

All in all, not too much is known about the Tibetan Sand Fox and it is rumoured that the BBC programme Planet Earth (shown in 2006) was actually the first time these foxes had ever been filmed. Obviously more studies need to go into the Tibetan Fox in order to build a better picture of it’s behavioural habits.