Red Fox
Vulpes vulpes
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The scream on a January night is not distress — it is a vixen advertising for a mate.
A slim, russet-red dog with black-backed ears, black stockings, a white throat and a long white-tipped brush. Foxes live right across the Dumfries area — farmland, woodland, riverbank and the town itself, where gardens, allotments and quiet lanes suit them well. Urban foxes are not a different animal from country ones, simply the same species exploiting a different food supply.
Behaviour
Foxes are opportunists, eating small mammals, birds, earthworms, beetles, fruit and refuse in whatever proportion the season offers, and caching surplus food. The high-pitched, almost human scream heard on winter nights is the vixen's mating call, and the triple-bark 'wow-wow-wow' is a contact call between foxes. Cubs are born underground in March and start appearing above ground in April and May.
When to see it
Quick facts
- Family
- Dogs and foxes (Canidae)
- Size
- Body 58–90 cm plus a 32–48 cm tail
- UK status
- Widespread and common; not protected
Photo by ClaudiaTen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons