Published: Saturday, December 25, 2010
It's cool to see a fox — unless you're a mouse
My closest encounter with a red fox was on the west side of San Juan Island, where large stretches of wind-swept prairie rule the landscape, a place that rabbits, mice, voles and foxes call home.
As we were driving through the prairie, a movement near the side of the gravel road caught my eye. In the grass, about 15 feet away, a fox was stalking, and then waiting, for a meal of mouse or vole.
Neither the van nor my rolling down the window and taking countless photographs bothered it.
Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are in the family Canidae with carnivorous animals such as wolves, coyotes, domestic dogs and jackals. The advantage of quickness and speed is found in their body shape (long, slender) and legs (longer legs and smaller stomachs), a build built for speed.
Speed is in the eye of the beholder, apparently, since experts estimate foxes can reach 30 to 45 mph, although I doubt many speed guns have clocked a fox running full out in a straight line.
Don't worry about foxes breeding with your Chihuahua, poodle or Jack Russell terrier. Male foxes are not interested and have a different number of chromosomes from dogs and wolves. Dispense with the worries or those dreams of creating a foxy cocker spaniel.
Another type of speed is a necessity. The females' once-a-year estrous period (in heat) only lasts from one to six days in winter. Although a vixen may mate with more than one male, she only has one male partner during the winter's rearing of her litter.
If kits were birds, they'd be described as altricial, arriving in the world naked and blind. Kits are helpless and require full-time attention for a month. The male brings the female food until she can leave the kits and hunt on her own. The young ones disperse in the fall, encouraged by the female to leave the den.
After the young ones are on their way, the male leaves, with the encouragement of the territorial female if needed.
When we say fox we're referring to the red fox. There are, however, others species in the U.S, including the slower gray fox, which can climb trees (I've seen a photograph) with its powerful short legs and hooked claws.
The red fox is indigenous in the central and east Cascades and fossils date back thousands of years. Due to the introduction of red foxes for hound hunting and fur production, the population and range in Washington expanded in the 19th century. Many escaped, or were released, from fur farms up into the mid-20th century.
If you see a mangy looking red fox, don't assume that it's sick or rabid. When summer arrives, the fox gets a new coat of fur and sheds the old fur from underneath in a couple of weeks. This doesn't happen uniformly and creates a ragged-looking fox until the process is complete.
Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.Foxy facts
Length: About 25 inches long; looks longer because of its 2- to 3-foot-long tail.
Lifespan: In the wild, usually 3 to 5 years; in captivity, usually 8 to 12 years.
Active: Dusk and night.
Eyesight: Poor, mostly a movement detector.
Hearing: Excellent; said to be able to hear a ticking watch from 40 feet.
Sense of smell: Excellent.
Swimming ability: Can, in a pinch.
Meals: Meat, berries, vegetables, nuts, fruit.
Plays with food: Stalks and, like cats, sometimes plays with its live food before eating.
As we were driving through the prairie, a movement near the side of the gravel road caught my eye. In the grass, about 15 feet away, a fox was stalking, and then waiting, for a meal of mouse or vole.
Neither the van nor my rolling down the window and taking countless photographs bothered it.
Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are in the family Canidae with carnivorous animals such as wolves, coyotes, domestic dogs and jackals. The advantage of quickness and speed is found in their body shape (long, slender) and legs (longer legs and smaller stomachs), a build built for speed.
Speed is in the eye of the beholder, apparently, since experts estimate foxes can reach 30 to 45 mph, although I doubt many speed guns have clocked a fox running full out in a straight line.
Don't worry about foxes breeding with your Chihuahua, poodle or Jack Russell terrier. Male foxes are not interested and have a different number of chromosomes from dogs and wolves. Dispense with the worries or those dreams of creating a foxy cocker spaniel.
Another type of speed is a necessity. The females' once-a-year estrous period (in heat) only lasts from one to six days in winter. Although a vixen may mate with more than one male, she only has one male partner during the winter's rearing of her litter.
If kits were birds, they'd be described as altricial, arriving in the world naked and blind. Kits are helpless and require full-time attention for a month. The male brings the female food until she can leave the kits and hunt on her own. The young ones disperse in the fall, encouraged by the female to leave the den.
After the young ones are on their way, the male leaves, with the encouragement of the territorial female if needed.
When we say fox we're referring to the red fox. There are, however, others species in the U.S, including the slower gray fox, which can climb trees (I've seen a photograph) with its powerful short legs and hooked claws.
The red fox is indigenous in the central and east Cascades and fossils date back thousands of years. Due to the introduction of red foxes for hound hunting and fur production, the population and range in Washington expanded in the 19th century. Many escaped, or were released, from fur farms up into the mid-20th century.
If you see a mangy looking red fox, don't assume that it's sick or rabid. When summer arrives, the fox gets a new coat of fur and sheds the old fur from underneath in a couple of weeks. This doesn't happen uniformly and creates a ragged-looking fox until the process is complete.
Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.Foxy facts
Length: About 25 inches long; looks longer because of its 2- to 3-foot-long tail.
Lifespan: In the wild, usually 3 to 5 years; in captivity, usually 8 to 12 years.
Active: Dusk and night.
Eyesight: Poor, mostly a movement detector.
Hearing: Excellent; said to be able to hear a ticking watch from 40 feet.
Sense of smell: Excellent.
Swimming ability: Can, in a pinch.
Meals: Meat, berries, vegetables, nuts, fruit.
Plays with food: Stalks and, like cats, sometimes plays with its live food before eating.
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