Red Fox

Also known as

Black fox, cross fox, silver fox.

What is the scientific name?

Vulpes vulpes

• Pronounced VUL-peez VUL-peez
• What does it mean? "Fox fox." Vulpes is the Latin word for fox.

Where are they located? How many subspecies are there?

Red Foxes are found in most of North America, excepting parts of Canada and the southwestern United States. They are not native to some of the eastern states and were introduced to New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, and Virginia by hunters who enjoyed chasing them with hound dogs for sport (Samuel and Nelson 1982). There are 10 subspecies of red fox in North America. They are V.v. fulva, V.v. rubricosa, V.v. regalis, V.v. macroura, V.v. necator, V.v. abietorum, V.v. alascensis, V.v. harrimani, V.v. kenaiensis, and V.v. cascadensis, which inhabits the Northwest (Samuel and Nelson 1982).

Where do they live?

In a variety of habitats, including mixed hardwood woodlands, farmland, pastures, and brush. Red foxes are also found in suburban areas. They use edges habitually for hunting (Samuel and Nelson 1982). Edges are areas where two plant communities come together, for example a forest and a grassland. Edges often have a greater diversity of animal life than either plant community separately.

What do they look like?

Like the black bear, this species is misnamed. There are several color phases of the red fox, including red, silver, and cross, as well as combinations of all three. The red phase is red colored above, whitish below. The silver phase is almost completely black with silver tipped hairs, and the cross phase is reddish brown with a dark cross on its shoulders. All color phases of the red fox have a white tipped tail.

How big are they?

Males are usually bigger than females. Head and body length for both sexes are between 18 and 37 inches, tail length is between 12 and 23 inches. Males weigh an average of 9 to 12 pounds and females an average of 9 to 10 pounds (Nowak 1991). How long do they live? The average lifespan of red foxes is between three and four years. The potential longevity is reported to be 12 years (Nowak, 1991).

What do they eat?

Like the coyote, the red fox's diet changes with the seasons and locality. One study found that rabbits make up a larger proportion of its diet in the winter than in the summer, when it eats mostly rats and mice. Another study, in a different location, found that animals in general made up the bulk of the red fox's winter diet while insects and fruits were the summer preference. Besides rabbits and mice, red foxes eat raccoons, skunks, young opossums, squirrels, porcupines, songbirds, ducks, bird eggs, and a variety of other animal species. Plant foods include grasses, nuts, berries, fruits, corn, and wheat. They also eat carrion (Samuel and Nelson 1982).

Interesting notes: The red fox can run up to 30 miles per hour and is able to jump over barriers 6½ feet high (Nowak 1991).

All color phases of the red fox are found in the Pacific Northwest. One study found that northern red foxes are darker and its colors more intense than southern red foxes. For example, 70% of the red foxes in British Columbia exhibit the black and cross color phases. While in the Great Basin, further south, they make up less than 20% or the population, the red phase being more predominant.

In the Pacific Northwest, which lies between British Columbia and the Great Basin, a subspecies of red fox, V.v. cascadensis, is made up of 52% red phase and 48% silver or cross phase (Cowan 1938). This finding is contradictory to what occurs in most species. Gloger's Rule, a basic tenet of biology, states that birds and mammals living in the northern hemisphere tend to have lighter races living in the north and darker individuals in the south. While the "rule" obviously doesn't fit red fox populations, it is true most of the time.

Foxes often smell like they have been in a fight with a skunk, but the smell is actually a result of a small scent gland located beneath the tail near their anus. This skunk-like, sometimes known as "foxy," smell is associated with the courtship behavior of the red foxes. As one author has stated, "It is my nose more than anything that first tells me when foxes are courting," (Henry 1986). During courtship, a female and male red fox establish a territory by "scent marking." This is achieved by urinating on logs, rocks, and bushes, which in addition to the anal gland, serves as a secondary source of the fox's unique fragrance. The boundaries of this territory are characterized by the strong "foxy" odor. Foxes also have a scent gland on their tail, as do many canids, but the significance it plays communication is unknown (Lloyd 1980; Henry 1986).