Foxes in the New Forest – an introduction

	Fox on the prowl

If pressed to name a favourite British mammal, many people would surely nominate the Fox. Sleek, fine-boned, strong, energetic and highly intelligent; Foxes really are incredible creatures. And in the countryside, hunting has ensured that Foxes have remained wild and relatively unapproachable.

Foxes are relatively small creatures, not much bigger than a small Collie dog, and with very slender legs. In fact, it’s something of a puzzle that Foxes ever had the speed and stamina to evade the hunt.

Fox coat colour varies. Typically a rich, reddish-brown; some Foxes, though, are sandy-coloured, whilst others are considerably darker than normal.

Fox markings, too, often differ from animal to animal, which is a useful feature for anybody who wants to identify individuals amongst the local Fox population. Look out for variable extents of white on the chin, throat and chest; an optional, sometimes conspicuously white, sometimes dark, tip to the tail; and differently coloured lower legs – some dark, some not. 

Fox diet is made up of just about anything edible: mice, voles, rats, rabbits, hedgehogs, birds and their eggs and young, earthworms, fruit and berries, and probably much more.

In the New Forest, though, Foxes also take squirrels, although how the squirrels are caught is difficult to imagine. New Forest Foxes also eat large numbers of beetles, making up for a relative shortage of rats, mice and voles - grazing pressure from deer and commoners’ stock greatly reduces the ground cover needed to support significant small mammal populations.

Fox senses – hearing, eyesight and smell - are extremely well-developed as befits an animal that has long been hunted. Foxes, however, will not necessarily flee at the sight of humans, but do so only when they feel threatened, which often is when they realise that they have been noticed.

	Fox, ever alert

Although typically active at dusk and through the night, in quieter places it’s not unusual to encounter a Fox in daylight, particularly in winter, padding along a favourite woodland ride, stopping every few paces to listen, to stare down, to nose amongst the grass, to pounce on unfortunate prey items, and scent-mark prominent objects.

In fact, when there are young in the den, adult Foxes will sometimes emerge in the middle of the day, stretch and then either return underground or wander off, presumably keen to take a break from the youngsters.

Night-time vocalisations sometimes betray Fox presence. The ‘vixens scream’, a series of eerie shrieks, can be heard intermittently throughout the year, whilst breeding season territorial sounds are heard most often from December to February. The two most common Fox sounds: a mid-tone ‘wow-wow-wow’ bark and a fearsome ‘waaaaaaaa’, sometimes given by a stationary animal but also given on the move, allowing nocturnal passage through the woods to easily be followed.

But evidence of a Fox’s passing is more often encountered than the Fox.

Fox scent marking sometimes leaves a lingering, strongly musky, pungent aroma that is readily discernable to the human nose, whilst Fox footprints may occasionally be noticed - they are quite small, are more oval than those of dogs, and have four toes: two close together at the front, and one either side.

Fox prey remains can commonly be seen, strewn about the woodland floor. Look out for heaps of wood pigeon or other bird feathers, all with bitten-off shafts - sparrowhawks and other birds of prey pluck the feathers, leaving the shafts intact. Squirrel skins, turned inside out, are also sometimes encountered, and so are the severed tips of squirrels’ tails. Dead, discarded shrews also often signify the passing of a Fox – Foxes apparently find shrews distasteful!

Fox droppings, too, are distinctive, and are often deposited as a territory marker on prominent objects, such as mole hills or grass tussocks. They’re quite long, cylindrical, pointed and curled at one end, and often with bits of fur, feather and countless beetle wing cases visible.

References:
Collins Field Guide to the Mammals of Britain and Europe: David Macdonald and Priscilla Barrett