Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Family: Canidae Genus: Vulpes Species: vulpes
The red fox is a species found all over the world -- Europe, North Africa, Asia, the Arctic Circle, Central and North America, and the United Kingdom. They are the largest species of fox in the world and are best known for their "bushy" tails. Red foxes are usually rust to red/orange color with black points (tips of the ears and legs), but other color phases include silver, black, and a mix of red and silver called a “cross fox”.
Red foxes are highly adaptable and live in diverse habitats including grasslands, forests, deserts, mountains, riparian areas, and urban areas. Even during the coldest weather, the red fox will rarely take refuge in a den. Instead, it will curl up in a ball, using its long tail as a blanket, covering its nose and footpads. The only known time a red fox will "den up," is during a mother's first few weeks with her kits. Here, she will keep her kits warm and safe, while her mate does the hunting for the family.
Their diet in the wild will consist of mice, rabbits, rodents, birds, insects, grasses and berries. When in captivity they are fed a commercially prepared raw meat diet supplemented with dry dog food.
The red fox's sense of hearing and smell are extremely acute, and small prey can be pinpointed up to 100 feet away. The red fox's typical hunting strategy is the "pounce" method, which involves a quick leap, landing on top of its prey. This is a very effective method for trapping rodents, as it hinders their primary escape method: jumping up and away from a predator.
Red foxes will often bury or “cache” food they cannot eat right away and mark it with urine. They will use their incredible sense of smell to seek it out later. Urine is also used to mark the boundaries of their home range, or to cover another fox’s scent mark. Humans can also detect the urine marking, although we may not recognize it as a fox’s scent as their markings smell like a skunk’s musk.
Although the red fox is a member of the canine, or dog family, its eyes are much more like a cat with an oval shaped pupil rather than round like many other animals. The vertically slit pupils paired with eyelids that shut horizontally helps regulate the amount of light entering the eye during the day. Foxes also have an layer of reflective cells called the tapetum lucidum that doubles the use of available light while retaining the contrast and sharpness of an image that makes them highly effective night hunters.
